Huntress Survey Finds Rising Human Risk Despite Increased Security Training Spend

Summary

Huntress’s survey of more than 500 security awareness training admins and learners found rising budgets alongside reported increases in human-error incidents and risk. The article recommends more frequent, current, interactive training.

Key points

Huntress surveyed more than 500 admins and learners of security awareness training (SAT) programs.
93% of SAT admins said their budgets had increased over the prior three years; 94% reported rising incidents caused by human error.
62% of admins said their organization’s human risk exposure increased after introducing an SAT program; the article cautions that this does not establish causation.
More than 90% of admins and 88% of learners considered their current SAT program effective, despite the reported risk trends.
Although 95% of admins called their program manageable, 61% said they spent at least 10 hours a month managing it; keeping training materials current was their top challenge.
The article recommends expert-developed training based on current threats, delivered frequently in short lessons with interactive and personalized content.

Article Details

Publisher: Huntress
Report Period: 2025
Scope: Survey of more than 500 security awareness training (SAT) administrators and learners across the market.
Sample Size: Over 500 admins and learners; exact count not disclosed.
Key Statistics: 93% of SAT administrators said their SAT budgets increased in the previous three years.
94% of administrators said security incidents caused by human error were increasing during that period.
62% said their organization’s human-risk exposure increased after implementing an SAT program; the article cautions that correlation does not establish causation.
86% of employees said SAT helped them recognize or avoid a real threat, and 92% felt confident they would respond correctly to a cybersecurity incident.
95% of administrators called their program manageable, while 61% said they spent at least 10 hours per month managing it.
Recommendations: Develop training content based on current threats and tradecraft, with input from security experts.
Use frequent, short, continuous lessons rather than quarterly or annual training.
Use interactive, personalized content, including hands-on experiences, realistic simulations, and engaging video.

People

Dima KumetsIdentified as Huntress Principal Product Manager for Managed SAT; quoted on investing in outcomes that reduce human risk.James O’LearyNamed as the author of the article.Truman KainIdentified as Huntress Principal Product Researcher; quoted on the limits of confidence after training.

Vendors

Huntress“Confidence after training does not always translate into real-world readiness," says Truman Kain, Principal Product Researcher at Huntress.

Products

Huntress Managed SATBuild a security awareness training program that actually changes user behavior. Huntress Managed SAT delivers engaging content, phishing sims, and results.Huntress Threat SimulatorRead more about Breaking Down Barriers in SAT: Introducing Huntress Threat Simulator Managed EDRManage human risk by turning real-world incidents into teachable moments with Behavior-Based Assignments. This new feature integrates with Managed EDR and Managed ITDR to provide targeted security awareness training.Managed ITDRManage human risk by turning real-world incidents into teachable moments with Behavior-Based Assignments. This new feature integrates with Managed EDR and Managed ITDR to provide targeted security awareness training.