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Human Factors in Security: Building a Security-Aware Culture

Cybersecurity and Digital Risk October 25, 2025
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Introduction

The human element remains the most critical, yet often weakest, link in the security chain. This course moves beyond simplistic, mandatory annual training to focus on the psychology, communication, and management techniques required to fundamentally change user behavior and build a true security-aware culture. Participants will learn how to design, implement, and measure the effectiveness of engaging, continuous security awareness and training (SAT) programs. The goal is to transform employees from passive liabilities into active, proactive defenders, thereby significantly reducing the risk from social engineering and internal errors.

Objectives

This program is designed to equip security managers, awareness specialists, and HR professionals with the psychological and strategic tools to build, manage, and measure a high-impact security culture and awareness program:

Target Audience

  • Security Awareness and Training (SAT) Specialists.
  • CISO and Security Directors.
  • HR and Internal Communications Teams.
  • Compliance and GRC Professionals.
  • Internal Auditors.
  • SOC/Incident Response Team Members.
  • Department Heads and Team Leads.

Methodology

  • Group activities designing a 12-month security awareness communications calendar.
  • Hands-on exercise creating a non-punitive response policy for a failed phishing test.
  • Case studies on major breaches where human error was the root cause.
  • Discussions on the ethical use of gamification and internal security measurements.
  • Role-playing a presentation to a CEO to gain buy-in for a culture change program.

Personal Impact

  • Ability to design and lead a sustainable, high-impact security culture program.
  • Expertise in the psychology of behavior change and adult learning principles.
  • Mastery of conducting risk-based phishing simulations and measuring success.
  • Skills to effectively engage and train diverse, specialized audiences (e.g., developers).
  • Credibility in communicating human risk metrics to executive leadership.
  • Enhanced personal communication and influencing skills.

Organizational Impact

  • Significant reduction in incidents caused by human error (e.g., phishing, misconfiguration).
  • Improved employee compliance with security policies and procedures.
  • Development of a proactive "security champion" network across the organisation.
  • Faster incident reporting and better internal vigilance against social engineering.
  • Demonstrable due diligence to auditors on the human risk front.
  • Transformation of employees from liabilities to active defenders.

Course Outline

Unit 1: Foundations of Security Culture

Section 1.1: Defining Security Culture
  • The difference between Security Awareness, Training, and Culture.
  • Psychology of security behavior change and decision-making.
  • Understanding cognitive biases and how they affect security decisions.
  • The critical role of leadership and management in setting culture tone.
Section 1.2: Phishing and Social Engineering
  • Deep dive into common social engineering tactics and techniques.
  • Understanding the psychology of persuasion and influence in attacks.
  • Building and running a continuous, risk-based phishing simulation program.
  • Analyzing and communicating phishing simulation results effectively.

Unit 2: Designing the Awareness Program

Section 2.1: Needs Assessment and Content Strategy
  • Conducting a security culture assessment and identifying high-risk groups.
  • Tailoring content for specific roles (Executives, Developers, Finance, etc.).
  • Strategies for continuous, just-in-time, and micro-learning content delivery.
  • Creating a communications plan and brand for the security program.
Section 2.2: Gamification and Engagement
  • Applying gamification principles to motivate and sustain engagement.
  • Designing recognition and reward programs for security advocates/champions.
  • Using storytelling and real-world examples to make security memorable.
  • Leveraging internal communication channels (e.g., Slack, newsletters, town halls).

Unit 3: Security Champions and Developers

Section 3.1: The Security Champion Program
  • Defining the structure, roles, and responsibilities of Security Champions.
  • Strategies for recruiting and empowering cross-functional champions.
  • Developing specialized training and resources for the champions network.
  • Measuring the impact and ROI of the Security Champions program.
Section 3.2: Training for Developers
  • Moving beyond generic training to secure coding and AppSec education.
  • Integrating hands-on, contextualized training into the DevSecOps pipeline.
  • Managing and measuring the compliance of development teams.
  • Cultivating a "security-first" mindset within product development.

Unit 4: Measuring and Reporting Culture

Section 4.1: Metrics and KPIs
  • Developing quantitative and qualitative metrics for measuring culture change.
  • Using behavioral data (phishing click rates, clean desk policy adherence) as metrics.
  • Designing an annual or semi-annual security culture survey.
  • Translating culture metrics into business risk terms for executive reporting.
Section 4.2: Reporting to Executives and the Board
  • Developing a compelling narrative that links culture to breach reduction.
  • Presenting SAT program results and budget justification.
  • Communicating incidents as opportunities for cultural learning.
  • The role of internal audit in assessing security awareness and culture.

Unit 5: Advanced Topics and Future Trends

Section 5.1: Insider Risk Management
  • Identifying behavioral indicators of malicious and negligent insider threats.
  • Developing a non-punitive, supportive policy for reporting mistakes.
  • The importance of off-boarding security awareness and controls.
  • Integration of Human Risk Management (HRM) tools and processes.
Section 5.2: Future of Awareness
  • Leveraging AI/ML to personalize awareness content and delivery.
  • Awareness for remote workers, contractors, and third parties.
  • Embedding security awareness into new technologies (IoT, cloud, etc.).
  • The evolving role of the CISO as the Chief Culture Officer.

Ready to Learn More?

Have questions about this course? Get in touch with our training consultants.

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Upcoming Sessions

15 Dec

Abu Dhabi

December 15, 2025 - December 19, 2025

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Abuja

January 05, 2026 - January 09, 2026

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Amsterdam

January 26, 2026 - January 30, 2026

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