Phishing just got personal

Niall

October 1, 2026

Espria cyber security graphic featuring the headline "Phishing Has Changed. Could Your Team Spot It?" alongside an image of a person using a laptop while holding a payment card, illustrating the growing risk of phishing and payment fraud.

Estimated reading time: 3 minutes

By Richard Puckey, Espria Head of Compliance and Facilities

The Rise of AI-Powered Phishing and Human Risk

AI-generated phishing attacks have surged sharply through 2026, and polymorphic AI-generated content is driving a marked increase in phishing emails that get past email gateways, because it no longer follows the repetitive patterns that signature-based filters were built to catch.

Boards are responding by treating human behaviour as a distinct, measurable risk category in its own right: Human Risk Management, sitting alongside technical controls rather than beneath them.

Reducing Human Risk with SecureLearn

Your technology can block thousands of threats, but it only takes one convincing message to get through.

Espria SecureLearn helps employees spot phishing, report it quickly and stop human error becoming a security incident. Built on KnowBe4 and fully managed by Espria, it replaces annual, tick-box training with a continuous programme of role-based learning, adaptive phishing simulations and targeted coaching.

Gain Visibility Into Your Organisation’s Human Risk

Do your IT and compliance teams have the time to run phishing simulations, analyse results and report on your organisation’s human risk position?

SecureLearn does the heavy lifting for you. Fully managed by Espria, it provides clear visibility of how employees respond to phishing threats, including how many people interact with simulated attacks, how many report them and how quickly, whether performance improves over time, where risk is concentrated, and whether targeted coaching reduces repeat mistakes.

Board-Ready Reporting That Drives Action

Quarterly, board-ready reporting turns this data into meaningful insight, helping you focus effort where it will have the greatest impact and providing evidence of improvement over time.