Beyond the Click: Why Phishing Simulations Still Matter in 2025

The Click is Not the Enemy — A Strategic View of Employee Phishing Resilience

As cybersecurity leaders, we’ve been conditioned to track one key metric in phishing awareness programs — the click rate. For over a decade, this figure has stood as a proxy for employee vigilance, drawing attention in boardrooms and audit reviews alike. But in 2025, we must ask ourselves — is the click still the right metric? Or is it just the starting point of a deeper conversation?

The landscape of phishing threats has evolved dramatically. What was once the domain of poorly written spam messages is now a sophisticated, AI-powered ecosystem of deception — leveraging personal data, emotional manipulation, and seamless impersonation. Employees aren’t failing because they lack training — they’re failing because attackers are evolving faster than most organizations’ security awareness programs.

Phishing simulations, often seen as a repetitive compliance task, are in fact a powerful strategic tool when used correctly. They help organizations understand human risk, adapt controls based on behavior, and create a culture where employees play an active role in defense.

Let’s explore why phishing simulations continue to matter in 2025 — and how we must transform them from check-the-box activities to dynamic, data-driven defense mechanisms.

The New Threat Landscape: AI-Driven Phishing and Behavioral Targeting

Phishing has not only endured; it has matured. According to the 2025 Verizon Data Breach Investigations Report (DBIR), over 80% of social engineering breaches involved some form of phishing — and among those, nearly 70% were highly personalized.

The driving forces behind this shift are:

1. AI-Augmented Phishing Campaigns

Generative AI tools, particularly those powered by large language models (LLMs), are now widely accessible and used by threat actors to craft believable, contextual, and error-free phishing messages. These emails mimic tone, internal jargon, and even mimic the formatting of actual company communication. Worse, attackers can create thousands of such messages within minutes.

2. Multichannel Deception

Attackers no longer rely solely on email. Phishing is now omnichannel:

• Mobile phishing (Smishing) via SMS, WhatsApp, or Telegram.

• QR code phishing (Quishing) embedded in physical flyers, packaging, or meeting invites.

• Voice phishing (Vishing) using AI-generated voices impersonating CXOs.

• Business collaboration tool phishing — with Slack, Microsoft Teams, and Zoom being abused to deliver lures disguised as routine messages.

This multichannel delivery means employees must be trained to recognize social engineering tactics wherever they occur — not just in Outlook or Gmail.

Why Phishing Simulations Remain a Critical Line of Defense

While security technologies like Secure Email Gateways (SEGs), DMARC, and Zero Trust solutions offer perimeter protection, phishing simulations address the last line of defense — human behavior. And that line is more critical than ever.

1. They Surface Real Human Risk Metrics

Effective phishing simulations help CISOs answer questions technology can’t:

• Which departments or locations are consistently vulnerable?

• How quickly does the average employee report a suspicious email?

• Are high-risk roles like finance, legal, or IT falling for social engineering?

• What’s the rate of repeated offenders and are our interventions effective?

These insights aren’t just useful for awareness — they directly inform identity and access management policies, incident response strategies, and cyber insurance assessments.

2. They Simulate Real-World Attack Paths

A phishing simulation is not just a test of awareness — it is a controlled breach exercise. A cleverly designed simulation can model what would happen if an employee:

• Clicks a fake invoice and enters credentials.

• Downloads a fake document and enables macros.

• Responds to an email impersonating the CEO requesting a fund transfer.

This is red teaming, done at scale — without the operational impact of real compromise.

3. They Reinforce Culture, Not Just Compliance

Compliance frameworks such as ISO/IEC 27001:2022, RBI Cybersecurity Framework for Banks, SEBI’s circular on cybersecurity, and IRDAI’s guidelines now mandate employee awareness training. However, what regulators expect is more than training videos — they require evidence of effective programs.

Phishing simulations — when backed by measurable outcomes — offer exactly that. They show that the organization is not only educating but also validating behavior and closing the loop with reinforcement.

Common Failures in Phishing Simulation Programs

Despite their importance, phishing simulations often fail to make an impact. This is not because the concept is flawed, but because the execution is misaligned.

Generic or Predictable Templates

Employees quickly learn to recognize poorly designed fake emails that lack nuance. When every simulation looks like a typical spam message or is always marked “Training Email,” employees disengage.

In 2025, attackers are using personalization — simulations must do the same. Use real company events, policy updates, vendor communication styles, and internal tone.

Lack of Role-Based Targeting

Not all employees face the same threats. An HR executive is more likely to be targeted with fake resumes or onboarding forms. A CFO may get wire transfer requests. An IT admin may face credential theft attempts.

Simulations that fail to account for persona-specific attack vectors are training the wrong behavior in the wrong people.

No Post-Click Remediation

If the only outcome of a failed simulation is a generic video, the learning opportunity is lost. Instead, use the “teachable moment”:

• Show exactly what the user missed (hover text, spoofed domain, urgency trick).

• Offer interactive guidance tied to their specific action (e.g., clicking a link vs. submitting credentials).

Evolving Best Practices: Phishing Simulation in a Modern Enterprise

As phishing attacks grow more sophisticated, so must our simulations. Here are best practices aligned with 2025 realities:

1. Shift from Testing to Coaching

Phishing simulations should not feel like “gotcha” traps. Employees must see them as practice drills, with constructive feedback. Use simulations as conversations — not punishments.

Avoid public shaming. Celebrate successful reporting. Offer extra coaching for repeat clickers in a supportive environment.

2. Implement Adaptive Simulation Scheduling

Move away from predictable monthly tests. Instead, use behavior-based triggers:

• If an employee falls for a simulation, schedule a follow-up within 10 days.

• Tailor content based on failure type (e.g., credential entry vs. macro enablement).

AI-based simulation platforms can now adapt campaign difficulty dynamically based on user performance.

3. Encourage Reporting Over Avoidance

Your greatest metric is not who clicked — it’s who reported the phishing attempt.

Build mechanisms for easy, one-click reporting. Integrate with SOC tools to treat reports as threat intelligence. Recognize employees who consistently report suspicious activity.

This also aligns with detection and response strategies. The faster a phish is reported, the faster it can be contained — especially in lateral spread scenarios.

4. Make Executives Part of the Program

CISOs often hear, “Don’t send this simulation to the C-Suite.” That’s a critical error. Executives are primary targets for whaling attacks and Business Email Compromise (BEC).

Design executive-level simulations that mimic vendor disputes, investment updates, or urgent approvals. Train their executive assistants too — they are often the real targets behind the curtain.

Metrics That Matter: From Clicks to Culture

Here’s a framework to redefine success:

Metric	Insight Gained
Click Rate	Initial reflex; test of awareness.
Credential Entry Rate	Severity of user misjudgment.
Report Rate	Culture of proactive defense.
Time to Report	Incident detection speed.
Repeat Clicker Count	Need for personalized coaching.
Executive Engagement	C-Suite risk posture.

Visualize these over time using heatmaps or dashboards — correlate them with real incidents and user behavior trends. This is where phishing simulation graduates from training to risk intelligence.

The Future: Phishing Simulation as Part of CTEM

As organizations adopt Continuous Threat Exposure Management (CTEM) models, phishing simulation plays a key role. Gartner’s 2025 CTEM framework encourages:

• Simulating attacks across people, process, and technology.

• Measuring response and adaptation speed.

• Prioritizing remediation efforts based on real-world behavior.

Phishing simulations, in this context, become an active validation tool for identity posture, user risk scoring, and incident detection readiness.

Conclusion: Train Like You Fight, Fight Like You Simulate

Phishing simulations are no longer a soft skill initiative. They are an intelligence-gathering exercise. They tell us who’s ready, who’s vulnerable, and what culture exists beneath the surface of your controls.

In 2025, amid AI-fueled deception, rapid lateral movement, and remote-first workflows, every employee is a firewall. Every click is a signal. And every simulation is a story — of how your organization learns, adapts, and prepares for the real attack.

Don’t abandon simulations. Reimagine them. Move beyond the click. Focus on resilience.