The 10 best cyber security training solutions for government employees (free & paid)

Why is government cyber security training important?

Cyber security training for government employees is essential to keep constituents’ data safe.

About 95% of all data breaches are in some way caused by human error. Here are some examples:

• Clicking phishing links
• Using simple passwords
• Falling for social engineering
• Downloading software with malware
• Not updating the software of devices

In past years, we’ve seen many data breaches in government bodies that could have been prevented with the right security awareness training.

What are the best solutions for government cyber security training?

1. Guardey

Guardey is a security awareness training solution based on gamification. At the beginning of the game, users start their own fictional organization. By taking on bite-sized challenges, they can earn money for that organization.

The more they earn, the higher their rank on the leaderboard, where they take on their colleagues for the top spot. This form of gamification creates friendly competition and increases intrinsic learning motivation. With many CISOs naming engagement and participation as their biggest challenges, this is a huge plus.

Guardey offers a specific training programme tailored towards government organizations. This is especially interesting for government bodies that need to comply with information security directives. If needed, you can customize all content to fit your specific security policies.

Guardey is also a great tool for compliance reasons. You can prove that you offer regular training with its reporting feature, which shows the participation rate, the average score of your users, and which security topics may require some extra attention.

Best features

• Short, regular training
• Customizability
• Content programmes specifically for government organizations

Reviews

“We used to offer yearly security awareness training, but our employees still clicked a link during a phishing test. Since we started using Guardey, our team is more engaged in training and a recent phishing test saw an improvement of 84%.” – Source

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2. Breach Secure Now

Breach Secure Now offers white-label cyber security training solutions for businesses and organizations. Their stated aim is to turn staff into a “superhuman firewall” by equipping them with the knowledge and skills they need to stay safe in today’s threat landscape. Breach Secure Now provides tools and systems to facilitate this, emphasizing the importance of ongoing training to keep skills fresh.

Gamification is used to encourage users to progress, with points and leaderboards that motivate staff to complete weekly training content. Breach Secure Now provides assessments, simulations, and templates for policy and procedure to support effective security practices and response.

The advantages of Breach Secure Now include ease of use and a comprehensive suite of tools. The automated Breach Prevention Platform provides a single dashboard, allowing training and security tasks to be accessed from one convenient location. On the downside, Breach Secure Now is aimed at companies rather than specifically government cyber security training.

Reviews

Breach Secure Now has recieved positive reviews, with users reporting significant satisfaction. According to commenters on the Capterra and G2 platforms, the phishing prevention aspects were particularly popular.

Best features

• Quality customer service
• Phishing prevention training

3. Hoxhunt

Hoxhunt is a web-based cyber security training and human risk management solution. It is marketed as employing both machine learning and behavioral science to understand individual choices and develop learning paths tailored to individuals.

Hoxhunt’s main selling point is its focus on continual and in-the-moment training interventions, continually prompting end users to make more security-conscious choices and creating long-term behavior change as a result.

Hoxhunt is highly adaptive and versatile, making it a good choice for government contexts where specific requirements and regulations must be met. Hoxhunt offers several attractive features, including micro-training elements that help end users avoid risks such as today’s advanced phishing attacks. Hoxhunt provides a range of cyber security training tools, including automated workflows to facilitate rapid response, and metrics to assist security leaders in evaluating reductions to their cyber security risk levels.

Reviews

Hoxhunt is popular with users and has been well-received. It scores highly on ease of use, value for money, and customer service (according to Capterra.com).

Best Features

• Versatility
• Responsiveness

4. KnowBe4

KnowBe4 uses a combination of strategies to help mitigate cyber security risks for organizations. Through its comprehensive collection of security training content and automated systems, KnowBe4 can help promote greater awareness of potential risks and ensure that potential issues are reported promptly.

There are a few downsides, however. Firstly, KnowBe4 was developed with businesses in mind. While it’s adaptable and can certainly be deployed in other contexts, it wasn’t created specifically for government training applications. Also, some customers say that putting together a training program in KnowBe4 can be time-consuming. This is usually not a problem for enterprise organizations with cyber security teams, but not suitable for every government body.

Reviews

Reviews are generally positive but offer a few caveats. The training content is delivered on demand rather than as part of a structured course or in response to human activity, something that a few users report as frustrating.

Best Features

• Wide range of available training content

5. Arctic Wolf

Less widely used than some of its big-name competitors, Arctic Wolf Managed Security Awareness nonetheless offers a strong showing in terms of features and overall value for its users. Arctic Wolf Managed Security Awareness is part of the Arctic Wolf suite of security solutions, making it an appealing choice for organizations that use other Arctic Wolf products.

Its training materials are primarily focused on preparing end users to recognize and deal with phishing scams and other types of social engineering. Training is ongoing, featuring microlearning content and phishing simulations.

Reviews

Arctic Wolf Managed Security Awareness itself is light on reviews but the Arctic Wolf suite of security products has received good scores on reliable sites such as G2. Users praise the intuitive UIs and versatility.

Best Features

• Quality real-time support and customer service

6. NINJIO

NINJIO Security Awareness is a comprehensive cyber security training solution. It’s aimed at reducing risk by promoting greater risk awareness and modifying end-user behavior. NINJIO’s USP is its proprietary algorithm, which aims to analyze user behavior and deliver individualized training. Regular testing is used to evaluate participants and identify areas that need improvement.

Unlike some of its rivals, NINJIO provides ongoing training and regular reminders to ensure user engagement. Simulations and interactive materials help to prepare users for threats and give them the skills they require to deal with common issues such as phishing emails. While not specifically aimed at government training, NINJIO is versatile and can deliver relevant training across a range of different contexts.

NINJIO uses a lot of video material to guide its users through training material. This can be somewhat time-consuming, which is something to double-check while trying out their product.

Reviews

Reviews for NINJIO Security Awareness are generally very positive. Users praise NINJIO’s training materials and its emphasis on continuous learning. Trainings are concise, typically taking four to five minutes to complete, something that busy users appreciate.

Best features

• Quality training materials

7. Proofpoint

Proofpoint Security Awareness Training is a full-featured and customizable training solution. It aims to help organizations defend against a range of possible vulnerabilities. It’s chiefly focused on hardening staff against social engineering but also offers training related to more technical issues, like the importance of regular system updates. Its customizability makes it a good choice for cyber security training for government employees.

Reviews

Reviews for Proofpoint Security Awareness Training are broadly positive, with users praising the solution for its high level of customizability. On the other hand, more than one review has pointed out the user interface as a problem for them. Some find it unintuitive and difficult to learn, representing an obstacle to engagement.

Best features

• Customizability

8. Usecure

Usecure distinguishes itself from similar products by placing a heavier emphasis on evaluation and baselining. While the majority of cyber security training products offer some form of evaluation, Usecure places it front and center. Based on risk calculations, Usecure uses machine learning and AI to deliver individualized training that hardens your overall cyber security posture at the human level.

Usecure’s training materials naturally include phishing simulations, generated from templates that can be built to the client’s specifications. Simulations include domain spoofing to make training more convincing and effective.

When it comes to security awareness training government organizations require specific customization, making this a good option.

Reviews

Usecure has a good reputation among users, who particularly note its ease of use and customizability. It scores well on all important metrics.

Best features

• User-friendliness
• Versatility

9. Phished

As the name suggests, Phished offers extensive, ongoing training for end users to learn how to resist social engineering attacks. Phished employs machine learning to tailor its training programs to individual users, ensuring that everyone receives instruction that’s timely and relevant. Phished is marketed as offering a more holistic approach, with threat intelligence and active reporting used alongside training to harden cyber security.

Phished’s main USP is its highly automated, hands-free model. It’s intended to be set up once and then allowed to run with little intervention, using AI to respond to user behavior and tweak its training.

Reviews

Reviews are generally positive, with users scoring Phished highly for value, effectiveness, and ease of use. Pricing is dependent on the number of users in the workplace, making it a little difficult to ascertain, but value for money was a recurring point in user comments. Users also liked the ease of setup and the fact that you don’t have to design your training materials. The package does it all for you. The UI meets with broad approval, although the lack of interactive options on the dashboard provoked a little criticism.

Best features

• Reliability
• Ease of setup
• Effective automation

10. ESET

ESET offers a range of security products, from antivirus to internet security and endpoint protection. In addition, it also offers ESET Security Awareness Training. Rather than being a continuous training product, ESET Security Awareness Training is a “one and done” course that covers all the most important aspects of cyber security from the point of view of the average employee. It’s a one-size-fits-all course, typically taking under 90 minutes to complete and furnishing users with a solid grounding in cyber security.

As a respected name in security, ESET’s training course is comprehensive. There are convincing simulations, interactive videos, and unlimited tests to evaluate progress. The course is comprehensive, covering a range of topics including web protection, network security, and social engineering. On the downside, it doesn’t seem to offer ongoing training.

Reviews

Most reviews are positive, with satisfied users pointing to its interactivity and positive effect on cyber security awareness in their institutions. That said, users remarked that the phishing email templates require a certain amount of technical know-how to use effectively.

Best features

• Comprehensive
• Interactive

Conclusion

There are many training solutions for government cyber security training. But not all of them offer the exact same features. It’s essential to opt for a solution that offers training specifically created for government agencies while also being customizable to fit your specific security policies.

Guardey has worked together with small and large government agencies, cyber security specialists, and educationalists to build a security awareness training program specifically for government bodies. The content can be easily customized to your wishes. During regular short challenges, employees will keep their cyber knowledge up-to-date and keep their awareness at peak level.

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