A convincing phishing email rarely looks like an obvious scam. It may appear to come from Microsoft, a regular supplier, a director asking for an urgent payment, or a courier with a missed-delivery notice. To reduce phishing risks for staff, businesses need more than an annual awareness session. They need clear routines, sensible technology controls and a workplace culture where checking first is always encouraged.
For small and midsize businesses, phishing is not just an IT issue. One compromised Microsoft 365 account can expose customer records, divert invoice payments, interrupt operations and create hours of avoidable recovery work. The good news is that practical improvements can make a meaningful difference without making everyday work difficult.
1. Make phishing training relevant to real work
Generic training often fails because staff do not recognise their own day-to-day work in the examples. A property business may receive fake tenancy documents, a healthcare practice may receive false patient referrals, and a finance team may see fraudulent invoice or bank-detail requests. Training should reflect the messages people are genuinely likely to receive.
Show staff the warning signs they can act on: an unexpected attachment, a login request that creates urgency, a sender address that is nearly right, or a payment instruction that bypasses the usual process. Explain that criminals can use real company names, copied logos and convincing language. Spelling mistakes still happen, but they are no longer the main signal.
Short, regular reminders tend to work better than one long session each year. A five-minute discussion at a team meeting can keep the subject familiar and allow managers to address new scam patterns quickly.
2. Give staff a simple rule for unexpected requests
People make poor security decisions when they feel rushed. Phishing messages are designed to create exactly that pressure: an account will be closed, a parcel must be collected, payroll details need updating, or a director needs help immediately.
Give every employee a simple rule: stop, check and verify through a trusted route. If a message requests credentials, money, bank changes, sensitive information or an attachment to be opened unexpectedly, the recipient should pause before taking action.
Verification should happen outside the email or text message. That may mean calling a known supplier number, speaking to the colleague in person, or opening Microsoft 365 directly through the usual bookmark rather than selecting a link in the message. Replying to a suspicious email is not verification, as the attacker may control the account or address being used.
3. Create a reporting route people will actually use
Staff must know what to do when something feels wrong. If reporting is unclear or slow, people may delete the message and say nothing. That loses a valuable opportunity to protect colleagues who received the same campaign.
Choose one straightforward route, such as reporting the email to your IT support team or using an approved phishing-report button in the email system. Explain what information to include and make it clear that employees will not be blamed for asking. A quick report is far better than a silent guess.
The same applies when someone has already clicked a link or entered details. Your policy should be direct: report it immediately. There should be no embarrassment and no attempt to fix the issue alone. Fast reporting allows IT to reset passwords, revoke active sessions, check forwarding rules and contain a potentially compromised account before it causes greater damage.
4. Use multi-factor authentication properly
Multi-factor authentication, often called MFA, is one of the most effective protections against stolen passwords. It asks for an additional check when a user signs in, such as an authenticator app approval, a number match or a security key.
However, MFA is not a reason to relax. Attackers can use fake login pages to capture passwords and then bombard users with approval prompts until somebody accepts one by mistake. This is known as MFA fatigue. Staff should never approve a sign-in request they did not initiate.
Where possible, use number matching in authenticator apps and review conditional access settings with your IT provider. Higher-risk accounts, especially directors, finance staff and administrators, may need stronger controls. The right setup depends on how your team works, including whether staff travel, use shared devices or need access from different locations.
5. Protect the systems behind the inbox
Phishing prevention works best in layers. Staff awareness matters, but email filtering, endpoint protection and sensible account settings reduce the number of dangerous messages that reach users in the first place.
Your business should ensure that spam and anti-phishing filters are configured for its email platform, software and devices are updated promptly, and antivirus protection is actively monitored. Disable old or unused accounts quickly, especially after an employee leaves. Shared logins should be avoided because they make it harder to trace activity and protect access.
Backups also matter. A phishing attack may lead to ransomware, deleted files or unauthorised changes to cloud data. Tested backups and a clear disaster recovery plan give the business a route back if prevention fails. They are not a substitute for security controls, but they reduce the operational impact of an incident.
6. Put extra checks around payments and data
Some phishing attempts are after passwords. Others are designed to redirect money or obtain personal and commercial information. These attacks can be particularly costly because they often target people who have authority to act quickly.
A payment process should never rely on an emailed request alone, even if it appears to come from a director or long-standing supplier. Require an independent confirmation for new bank details, changed payment instructions or unusual urgent transfers. A known telephone number or established contact method is safer than a number supplied in the email.
The same principle applies to sensitive data. Before sending employee records, customer information or financial documents, staff should confirm both the recipient and the reason for the request. Encryption and secure file-sharing tools can help, but a message sent to the wrong person is still a problem. Process discipline remains essential.
7. Test, review and improve without catching people out
Simulated phishing exercises can reveal where extra support is needed, but they should be used constructively. The aim is not to name and shame staff or create anxiety. It is to identify patterns, improve training and make reporting feel normal.
Review the results alongside real incidents and near misses. Are staff frequently receiving supplier impersonation emails? Are certain departments handling a high volume of attachments? Has a business change, such as a new payroll system or office move, created new opportunities for criminals to impersonate your organisation?
It is also worth reviewing access permissions and security settings at regular intervals. Businesses change quickly. New starters join, suppliers change, devices are replaced and teams begin using new applications. A control that was suitable a year ago may no longer match the way your organisation operates.
How to reduce phishing risks for staff without slowing work
The strongest approach is proportionate. If every message requires multiple approvals, teams become frustrated and may look for workarounds. If controls are too light, one rushed decision can create a serious incident. Focus the strictest checks on the actions that carry the greatest consequences: payments, password resets, administrative access and sensitive data.
Managers also set the tone. When leaders follow the same verification process, avoid sending vague urgent requests and openly praise staff for reporting suspicious messages, security becomes part of normal business practice rather than an obstacle to productivity.
Phishing methods will continue to change, including more convincing messages created with AI and attacks that begin by phone, text or social media rather than email. Your response does not need to be complicated. Keep systems maintained, make reporting easy, and give people permission to pause. With the right support and regular review, Trust PC Expert can help turn that pause into a dependable layer of protection for your business.
