Small businesses should choose a security awareness training platform that teaches the behaviors employees actually need—spotting suspicious messages, protecting accounts and data, keeping software current, and reporting concerns—and makes it practical to deliver and track that learning. Start with those needs, then assess practice exercises, reporting, privacy, administration, and total cost. Training supports a broader security program; it does not replace safeguards such as multifactor authentication, software updates, backups, or encryption.
Start with the behaviors your team needs to learn
Use the work employees do and the risks they face to define the curriculum before comparing product catalogs. CISA’s Small and Medium-Sized Business Resources covers phishing avoidance, passwords, multifactor authentication (MFA), and software updates among core topics. CISA also provides learning resources on protecting data stored on devices and using a password manager.
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- Phishing and social engineering: Help staff recognize unexpected requests, suspicious links, and attempts to obtain sensitive information. Include a clear way to report a concern.
- Passwords and password managers: Teach employees how to handle credentials safely and use the password manager selected by the business.
- MFA: Explain how to use the company’s chosen authentication method and why account protection matters. CISA’s small-business MFA guidance says to “Educate your employees.” Its guidance ranks security keys as the strongest option among the methods it lists, followed by number-matching authenticator apps, one-time-code apps, biometrics (best combined with another method), and text or email codes. See CISA’s Require Multifactor Authentication guidance.
- Updates and device/data protection: Make clear how employees should respond to update prompts and protect business information on the devices they use.
Ask whether administrators can tailor lessons to your work, policies, and reporting route. Generic content may cover useful principles but still leave employees unsure what to do with a suspicious message or request in your organization.
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Check how learning and practice are delivered
A catalog alone does not show whether staff will retain or use what they learn. Ask how the service supports short lessons, recurring refreshers, and opportunities to practice recognizing suspicious requests. Employees should learn how to verify an unusual request through a known contact method—not by replying to the message that raised the concern.
If the platform offers phishing simulations, ask how realistic they are, whether they include an explanation that helps staff learn, and how administrators handle mistakes. The goal is better recognition and prompt reporting, not embarrassment or punishment. CISA’s Four Cybersecurity Essentials for SLTTs says, “Frequent, realistic testing helps employees build lasting awareness,” and recommends making reporting safe and requiring regular training. That guidance is directed at state, local, tribal, and territorial organizations, so treat it as relevant adjacent advice rather than a small-business requirement or a prescribed training schedule.
Make reporting safe and easy
Training has limited practical value if an employee who spots a suspicious email does not know where to send it—or fears getting in trouble for clicking. Look for lessons that explain your actual reporting process and encourage people to report quickly, including when they are unsure or have made a mistake. Confirm that your internal process has a named destination, such as the person or team responsible for security, and tell employees what to expect after they report.
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Choose reporting that helps a small team act
Ask vendors what administrators can see and whether the information is manageable for a small organization. Useful questions include whether you can identify who completed assigned learning, spot topics that may need follow-up, and see how employees are using a reporting channel. These are buyer questions, not a standard set of metrics established by the cited guidance.
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Completion, simulation, and reporting figures are operational indicators. A high completion rate or a simulation score does not by itself prove that your business is safer or that incidents will fall; the available sources do not quantify platform effectiveness or show that a simulation result predicts incident reduction. Use the measures to guide follow-up and improve training, not as a substitute for assessing technical controls and real reporting practices.
Evaluate privacy, administration, and total cost
Before uploading employee information or enabling simulations, ask each vendor for clear answers to practical questions. Product-specific privacy terms, prices, integrations, and support details should be confirmed directly; they are not established by the general guidance cited here.
- Employee data: What information is collected, where is it stored, how long is it retained, and who can access it?
- Simulation data: What is recorded when staff receive or interact with a test message, and who can view the results?
- Administration: How are employees enrolled, reminders sent, and departures handled? Can a small team manage the service without unnecessary overhead?
- Access and inclusion: Ask about language and accessibility options, and check compatibility with your email and identity setup.
- Cost: Request the total cost at your actual seat count and clarify what is included, such as training content, simulations, reporting, support, or renewal terms.
Decide whether a paid platform adds enough
CISA provides free printable fact sheets and online learning resources for small and medium-sized businesses. Its 2024 Playbook for Strengthening Cybersecurity in Federal Grant Programs also lists SANS Security Awareness Training for end users and SANS Security Awareness Phishing Tools as fee-based resources. That establishes that paid services exist, not that a particular platform is best for your business.
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Compare a proposed service with the free materials and your capacity to assign, deliver, and track learning internally. A paid platform may be worth considering if it adds administration, ongoing delivery, practice, or reporting that your team needs. A paid product is not inherently necessary for every small business.
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CISA’s Cyber Essentials Toolkit 1, published May 29, 2020, calls for continuous investment in cybersecurity training and awareness capabilities for personnel. That makes training one part of a continuing security program—not a replacement for technical safeguards. Keep MFA, timely software updates, backups, encryption, and other appropriate protections in place alongside employee education.
CISA describes its small-business resources as helping businesses build “a culture of cybersecurity.” A platform can support that effort when it teaches relevant actions, fits the organization’s reporting process, and gives a small team manageable ways to deliver and follow up on learning.
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