Cyber Security Awareness Month 2026 User Education Checklist

At a Glance

Cyber security awareness training helps employees recognise and respond appropriately to threats such as phishing, business email compromise, social engineering, suspicious MFA requests and AI-assisted impersonation. Cyber Security Awareness Month offers an opportunity to review these skills, but effective user education should continue year-round through regular training, clear reporting procedures, practical exercises and role-specific guidance.

Learn more about Redpalm’s user awareness training. Call 0333 006 3366.

How to Build Cyber Security Awareness

Conversations about cyber security usually focus on firewalls, endpoint protection, vulnerability scanning and technical controls. But it’s easy to overlook the people side of your organisation’s cyber security equation.

From a convincing email persuading an employee to hand over login details to a weak or reused password that makes an account easier to compromise, scams and attacks can still succeed even when all your technical controls are in place.

This is why October, National Cyber Security Awareness Month, is a good chance to check whether your employees actually know how to respond when a threat comes knocking at your business’ back door.

It is a chance to highlight the importance of cyber security user education, giving people the practical knowledge they need to recognise common threats, follow good security practices and report something suspicious before it turns into a serious problem.

Use this guide as your cyber security user education checklist to find out where your organisation is already doing well and where your team needs more support.

What Is Cyber Security Awareness Month and Why Does It Matter for UK Businesses?

Cyber Security Awareness Month takes place in October and gives organisations a chance to build stronger cyber security knowledge and behaviours. This year’s theme is “Don’t Make It Easy for Them”.

It can also help you answer a key question.

Do your teams really know what to do when something suspicious happens?

This matters for UK businesses because, according to the UK Government’s 2026 Cyber Security Breaches Survey, 43% of businesses had experienced a cyber security breach or attack in the previous 12 months. Phishing was the most commonly identified type of breach or attack, with 38% of businesses reporting phishing attacks. This shows why your teams need to be able to recognise and report suspicious messages.

Use National Cyber Security Awareness Month in October as a chance to refresh your user education training, test employee knowledge and make cyber security part of everyday conversations.

Why User Education in Cyber Security Is Still Your Strongest Line of Cyber Defence

Even the best technology can block many threats before your employees notice. But attackers and scammers deliberately target situations that require a human decision.

For example, attackers often impersonate a supplier and ask your finance team to change bank details. Another common tactic is sending a fake Microsoft 365 login page to steal credentials. AI-generated text, audio and video also make impersonation easier for attackers to pull off and harder for your teams to spot.

Why Cyber Security Awareness Training Is Important

User education training teaches your employees to stop and question unusual requests. It also gives them a clear way to report anything that looks suspicious.

This matters because strong security awareness is not about employees never making mistakes. It’s about creating an environment where employees can recognise and report suspicious activity so you can act. 

The Common Threats Your User Awareness Training Should Cover

Phishing emails: Cover common signs of phishing, including unexpected links, unusual requests and attachments, requests for credentials and messages that fabricate urgency.

Business email compromise: Brief your staff in finance, payroll, procurement and administration to watch for unexpected requests to change bank details, payments and invoices.

Password and account security: Explain why you need to have unique, strong passwords and that they shouldn’t be reused.

MFA fatigue and unexpected authentication requests: MFA improves account security, but employees need to recognise repeated MFA requests they didn’t initiate. These may mean someone already has their password and is attempting to access their account.

Social engineering: Cover how attackers may use phone calls, text messages, social media and other communication methods, not just emails, to manipulate employees into revealing information or taking action.

AI-assisted impersonation and deepfakes: AI can make fraudulent images, emails and voice calls more convincing. Instead of teaching your employees to identify every AI-generated scam, teach them how to independently verify the request before taking any further action.

Malicious links and attachments: Train your employees to understand that messages appearing to come from a colleague don’t automatically make their contents safe, especially if that person’s account has been compromised.

Accidental disclosure: Beyond identifying and reporting malicious attacks and scams, cyber security user education should also cover data-handling best practices. Your teams need to know how sending information to the wrong recipient, oversharing documents or using unauthorised cloud services can expose your organisation.

A Practical Cyber Security User Education Checklist for Your Team

In October, National Cyber Security Awareness Month is a good time to work through the following cyber security user education checklist.

• Recognise Phishing

With 38% of UK businesses identifying phishing attacks in 2025/26, use realistic phishing examples rather than generic warning signs.

• Simplify Incident Reporting

When your employees spot anything suspicious, they need to know where to report it. Create a simple process so employees feel comfortable reporting without fear of judgement.

• Review Passwords

Check whether your employees understand the dangers of using weak or reused passwords. You can direct them on how to use a password manager, if your organisation uses one. 

• Is MFA Enabled?

Do your employees know how Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) works, how it protects their accounts and how to use it correctly? Importantly, ensure they never approve authentication requests they didn’t initiate and that they report them.

• Verify Financial Requests

Teams responsible for invoices, payroll and payments should follow a defined process to confirm unusual requests and changes to payment information.

• Cover Phone, SMS and Messaging Scams

Alongside email, your awareness training should cover social engineering attacks through SMS, WhatsApp, phone calls, social media, Microsoft Teams and other common communication channels.

• Discuss AI-Powered Social Engineering

Teach employees not to rely solely on spotting AI-generated or manipulated text, images and voices, and give them a clear process to independently verify unusual or sensitive requests.

• Explain Safe Data Handling

Discuss best practice for storing, sending, sharing and disposing of company and customer data.

• Cover Remote and Hybrid Working Risks

Ensure employees in remote or hybrid roles follow your company security procedures, from protecting devices to what to do if a phone or laptop is stolen.

• Explain Why Software Updates Matter

Make sure employees understand why security updates matter and don’t keep postponing them.

• Make Sure Staff Know What to Do After a Mistake

Your employees should know whom to contact immediately when a mistake happens. Encourage a culture where employees feel comfortable reporting mistakes instead of hiding them for fear of criticism or blame. 

• Include Cyber Security in Onboarding

Cyber security user education should also be part of your onboarding process. New employees should not have to wait for the next scheduled session to learn your organisation’s security procedures.

• Give High-Risk Teams Extra Training

Some teams face higher risks than others. Your finance teams may need additional training on payment fraud, while administrators with privileged access may need more guidance on account security.

• Test Whether Employees Have Understood the Training

Use short knowledge checks and simulated phishing exercises, where appropriate, to test employees’ knowledge.

• Review Your Incident Reporting Process

Ask a simple question: if an employee suspects their account has been compromised, would they know what to do next? Make sure the escalation process and emergency contact information are clear so the right people can act quickly.

How Ongoing, Proactive Training Beats a One-Off Awareness Session

Cyber Security Awareness Month is a useful way to draw attention to cyber risk, but the knowledge and behaviour should continue beyond the 31st October. 

A single annual user presentation may not keep pace with changing threats, new systems, changing working practices and attackers adapting their techniques. Instead, treat cyber security user education as an ongoing process.

Regular education keeps cyber security training visible and current. As your technical controls evolve, your user education should too.

Get Started With a Free Cyber Risk Score and Next Steps With Redpalm

Cyber security education can build employee knowledge, but training your staff is only one part of your organisation’s cyber security strategy. You also need to understand whether weaknesses exist elsewhere across your technology, processes and security controls.

Redpalm’s free Cyber Risk Score gives you a starting point for understanding your organisation’s current cyber security posture and identifying areas that need a second look. We can help you assess your current security position and share insights to make more informed decisions about your overall IT security strategy.

From there, Redpalm can help you take practical next steps, whether that means improving staff cyber security awareness or reviewing your existing IT environment, all backed by our proactive, 24/7 IT support.

Don’t let National Cyber Security Awareness Month this October become another annual email employees skim and forget. Let it be an opportunity to educate your teams and build stronger security habits that continue throughout the year.

Get your free Cyber Risk Score today. Contact us to discuss your IT requirements.