KnowBe4 Security Awareness Training: What It Is, What It Includes, and How It Works (2026 Guide)

Key takeaways

• KnowBe4 Security Awareness Training is a cybersecurity awareness training platform that pairs a content library with phishing simulation, risk scoring, and AI agents
• KnowBe4 has been owned by Vista Equity Partners since 2023, and since May 2026 its cybersecurity awareness training has been sold in two tiers, SAT Foundation and SAT Advanced
• Administrators run the KnowBe4 cybersecurity awareness training program as a repeating cycle of baseline testing, training assignment, ongoing phishing simulation, and measurement, which KnowBe4 says its AI Defense Agents can automate on SAT Advanced
• KnowBe4's Terms of Service renew KnowBe4 security awareness training subscriptions automatically and bar mid-term seat reductions, so renewal dates shape the cost of any change
• KnowBe4 security awareness training reviews on G2 are largely positive, while no current independent analyst ranking names one market leader
• The Security Awareness Platform Evaluation Framework compares any cybersecurity awareness training platform, including KnowBe4 and Adaptive Security, on channel coverage, content currency, personalization, measurement, reinforcement, and commercial fit.

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KnowBe4 Security Awareness Training is a cybersecurity awareness training platform from KnowBe4, a Florida-based company owned by Vista Equity Partners since 2023. It combines a training library, phishing simulation, per-user risk scoring, real-time coaching, and AI agents, and since May 2026 it has been sold in two tiers, SAT Foundation and SAT Advanced.

Organizations evaluating KnowBe4 security awareness training meet a very specific problem when evaluating the product. Search results and AI-generated summaries still cite retired subscription tiers, outdated customer counts, and former leadership, which leaves buyers without one current, reliable reference for KnowBe4 cybersecurity awareness training. This guide covers:

• What KnowBe4 security awareness training is and who owns the KnowBe4 company;
• How the KnowBe4 cybersecurity awareness training program works for administrators and employees;
• What the KnowBe4 platform includes, from the training library to KnowBe4 phishing simulation and AI agents;
• How KnowBe4 training tiers, contract terms, and customer fit compare in 2026;
• What KnowBe4 security awareness training reviews and market signals show;
• How to evaluate any cybersecurity awareness training platform with a six-criteria framework.

Cyberattackers now reach employees through cloned voices, text messages, and deepfake video calls that email-only testing never measures. Adaptive Security runs phishing simulations across all those channels in one program.

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What Is KnowBe4 Security Awareness Training?

KnowBe4 Security Awareness Training is a cybersecurity awareness training platform that teaches employees to recognize social engineering through a content library, simulated phishing, per-user risk scores, and AI agents. KnowBe4 launched it in 2012 as Kevin Mitnick Security Awareness Training (KMSAT), and Vista Equity Partners has owned the KnowBe4 company since February 2023.

KnowBe4 Security Awareness Training Explained

In practice, KnowBe4 Security Awareness Training is the subscription service a security team uses to assign courses, send simulated phishing messages, and track which employees click or report them. Real-time coaching and AI Defense Agents (AIDA) sit on top of that core, nudging employees inside collaboration tools and automating campaign decisions.

KnowBe4 markets the product as AI-native security awareness training and, as of October 2026, describes itself as a digital workforce security company that protects both employees and AI agents. That positioning places the KnowBe4 platform within human risk management, where vendors track employee behavior over time instead of counting course completions alone.

The training subscription is one part of a wider KnowBe4 portfolio that also includes email security, reported-email triage, and AI agent security products sold separately. A buyer comparing KnowBe4 security awareness training with other vendors therefore needs to confirm which capabilities sit inside the training subscription and which require another product.

According to Verizon's 2026 Data Breach Investigations Report, a human element was present in 62% of the breaches Verizon analyzed, up from 60% in the prior edition. That share explains why cybersecurity awareness training remains a standard control even as technical defenses improve.

KnowBe4 Company Background, Ownership, and Leadership

The KnowBe4 company was formed in Delaware in August 2010 as SEQRIT, LLC and converted to KnowBe4, Inc. in January 2016, according to KnowBe4's registration statement with the SEC. The same filing lists its headquarters in Clearwater, Florida, although KnowBe4's announcements carry a Tampa Bay dateline.

KnowBe4's 2021 IPO priced at $16 per share on April 21, 2021, and the stock began trading on Nasdaq as KNBE the next day. Vista Equity Partners' completion of the KnowBe4 acquisition on February 1, 2023, took the company private at $24.90 per share in cash. The transaction was a deal valued at about $4.6 billion when it was announced in October 2022.

Bryan Palma, formerly CEO of Trellix, became president and CEO of KnowBe4 on May 5, 2025, and founder Stu Sjouwerman serves as executive chairman as of October 2026. KnowBe4 names Greg Kras as its chief product officer in its May 2026 product announcement. They report three acquisitions that shaped its current portfolio:

• Egress: A UK email security provider, acquired on July 9, 2024, whose technology underpins KnowBe4 Defend and KnowBe4 Prevent;
• SecurityAdvisor: A real-time behavior coaching technology, acquired in November 2021;
• MediaPRO: A compliance training content business, acquired on March 1, 2021.

The table below summarizes the verified facts behind the KnowBe4 company profile.

KnowBe4 KMSAT, KSAT, and the 2026 Product Names

KnowBe4 KMSAT is the original name of KnowBe4's training product, short for Kevin Mitnick Security Awareness Training, which launched on July 9, 2012. The KMSAT label persists in older datasheets, support articles, and UK G-Cloud procurement listings, so buyers still meet it during procurement.

KSAT, short for KnowBe4 Security Awareness Training, is the current product name and appears on legacy quotes and in the KSATD stock-keeping unit for the former Diamond tier. KnowBe4 uses four other names across its 2026 materials:

• HRM+: KnowBe4's brand for its human risk management suite, launched in November 2024,
• AIDA: The family of AI agents styled AI Defense Agents on product pages and Artificial Intelligence Defense Agents in press materials,
• KnowBe4 Studios: The in-house studio and library brand behind KnowBe4's training content,
• Real-Time Coaching: The current name of the behavior coaching product formerly called SecurityCoach, a name some non-English KnowBe4 pages still use in their web addresses.

A product’s name may convey what it does, but not whether employees can recognize social engineering threats on a live call. Adaptive Security tests that exact moment with realistic vishing simulations.

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How KnowBe4 Security Awareness Training Works

KnowBe4 Security Awareness Training works as a repeating cycle in which administrators run baseline testing, training assignment, phishing simulation, and measurement, while employees receive enrollment emails, short modules, and simulated phishing messages. KnowBe4 says its AI Defense Agents can automate most of that cycle on SAT Advanced.

The KnowBe4 Cybersecurity Awareness Training Program Admin Workflow

According to the UK Department for Science, Innovation and Technology's Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2025/2026, 22% of UK businesses tested staff, for example with mock phishing exercises. A KnowBe4 cybersecurity awareness training program builds that testing into every stage, starting before any course is assigned.

KnowBe4 describes six steps for administrators running the cybersecurity awareness training program:

1. 1Provision users: Administrators import employees through Active Directory or System for Cross-domain Identity Management (SCIM) from Microsoft Entra ID, Okta, or OneLogin, with single sign-on (SSO) available at every tier. Provisioning through a directory keeps the employee list current as people join, move, or leave;
2. 2Run a baseline test: A first simulated phishing campaign measures how many employees click before any cybersecurity awareness training begins. KnowBe4 also offers a skills-based assessment and a Security Culture Survey to capture knowledge and attitudes alongside click behavior;
3. 3Assign courses: Automated campaigns send modules and reminders, and KnowBe4's Automated Security Awareness Program (ASAP) builds a program plan from answers to seven questions. Content Manager lets administrators apply branded themes and stop employees from skipping through content;
4. 4Test continuously: Unlimited phishing simulations run alongside vishing (voice phishing), callback phishing, QR code, and USB drive tests on SAT Advanced, so the program measures behavior beyond the inbox;
5. 5Remediate failures: Employees who click receive remedial lessons or a short SecurityTip, and Social Engineering Indicators highlight the red flags they missed in the message;
6. 6Measure results: Administrators track risk scores, completion, and reporting rates through KnowBe4's built-in reports and present trends to leadership.

KnowBe4 now markets this sequence as Train, Test, and Reinforce, a relabeling of the four steps it described for years: baseline testing, training, phishing, and results.

How AIDA Orchestration Automates KnowBe4 Training

KnowBe4 introduced AIDA Orchestration on February 24, 2026, as its eighth AI agent, according to SecurityBrief UK's coverage of the launch of AIDA Orchestration. With the agent enabled on SAT Advanced, KnowBe4 says it selects content, schedules phishing and KnowBe4 training for each employee, and decides remediation without administrator-built campaigns.

KnowBe4 describes Orchestration as coordinating three sub-agents:

• Ongoing Training Agent: Assigns personalized lessons that close each employee's knowledge gaps,
• Phishing Agent: Creates and delivers personalized phishing simulations for each employee,
• Remedial Training Agent: Tailors follow-up training to each employee's phishing test results.

KnowBe4 also claims that Orchestration reduces risk faster than programs managed by people, a comparison it publishes without independent verification. For a team evaluating the KnowBe4 platform, the practical change is workload, because the administrator reviews outcomes and adjusts policy instead of scheduling each campaign by hand.

What Employees Experience in KnowBe4 Cybersecurity Awareness Training

Employees enter KnowBe4 cybersecurity awareness training through an enrollment email from KnowBe4's training domain, then complete assigned modules in a browser or the KnowBe4 Learner App on a phone or tablet. Automated reminders follow until each assignment is complete.

According to the FBI's 2025 IC3 Annual Report, the Internet Crime Complaint Center recorded 191,561 phishing and spoofing complaints in 2025. Simulated phishing gives employees a safe version of that experience, since clicking a test message opens a landing page or remedial content that shows the red flags the employee missed.

Employees report suspicious messages through KnowBe4's Phish Alert Button, an email add-in that can return positive reinforcement when a reported message turns out to be a test. SecurityTips and reminders reach employees in Microsoft Teams, Slack, Google Chat, or email, so short lessons arrive in the tools employees already use during the workday.

When campaign scheduling consumes the security team's week, analysis of who keeps clicking, and why, gets pushed aside. Adaptive Security automates phishing simulations and surfaces the employees who need attention.

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What the KnowBe4 Security Awareness Training Platform Includes

As of October 2026, the KnowBe4 security awareness training platform includes five capability groups: a KnowBe4 Studios content library, multi-channel phishing simulation, risk scoring with real-time coaching, AI Defense Agents, and add-on products. Every capability described here comes from KnowBe4's own product materials and has not been independently tested.

KnowBe4 Training Modules in the KnowBe4 Training Library

KnowBe4 Studios, the company's in-house production arm, makes the KnowBe4 training modules in a library that KnowBe4 lists at more than 1,000 items with monthly updates. KnowBe4 counts eight content formats without naming all of them, and the formats it does describe across its pages fall into three groups:

• Assigned lessons: Interactive modules, video modules, and animated courses that employees complete as part of a campaign,
• Series and games: The Inside Man live-action series, the Chameleon video series, and games such as Spot the Vish in 60 Seconds, a vishing recognition game,
• Reinforcement materials: Audiocasts, posters, newsletters, digital signage, and PDF documents for use between assignments.

KnowBe4 reports that The Inside Man and Chameleon have won Telly Awards and NYX Video Awards, and NYX lists Season 6 of The Inside Man as a Grand Winner at the 2025 NYX Awards. Fran Roberts, formerly of Nickelodeon Animation, leads production, according to KnowBe4.

Beyond a flagship annual course and short micro modules, KnowBe4 lists cybersecurity awareness training content on AI-era topics such as deepfakes and shadow AI. Custom material comes from a Custom AI Video Builder and an AI video partnership with Synthesia, and administrators find content through the ModStore catalog, which offers AI search, recommendations based on each employee's risk profile, and Learning Paths.

KnowBe4 states that the library follows WCAG Universal Design standards, with screen reader support, keyboard navigation, and captions. Its courseware roadmap lists Ransomware Awareness, Fraud Awareness, and Help Desk Security Awareness for the first half of 2026, with Supply Chain Security planned for the second half.

Which Channels KnowBe4 Phishing Simulation Covers

According to APWG's Phishing Activity Trends Report, 2nd Quarter 2026, phishing cyberattacks observed by APWG rose 10.1%, from 971,181 in the first quarter to 1,069,681 in the second quarter of 2026. That volume is the backdrop for every KnowBe4 phishing simulation campaign. Across both tiers and its training content, KnowBe4 lists six channels for KnowBe4 phishing simulation:

• Email phishing: Unlimited simulated phishing messages with AI-selected templates for each employee, plus phishing reply tracking that records when an employee answers a lure instead of clicking it,
• Vishing: Simulated voice calls, which KnowBe4 lists as a SAT Advanced feature,
• Smishing (SMS phishing): Covered through ModStore training content rather than a simulated text-message test, although KnowBe4's platform timeline says its AI Defense Agents have combined smishing with phishing and vishing since 2016,
• Callback phishing: Tests that combine a phishing message with a voice call, listed separately from vishing and limited to SAT Advanced,
• QR code tests: Physical QR codes that check whether employees scan unverified codes, on SAT Advanced,
• USB drive tests: Physical drives that check whether employees connect unknown removable media, on SAT Advanced.

According to Mandiant's M-Trends 2026, voice phishing accounted for 11% of the intrusions Mandiant investigated, the second most common initial infection vector, while email phishing accounted for 6%. Those figures explain why voice testing now sits beside email in any cybersecurity awareness training program.

Risk Scoring and Real-Time Coaching on the KnowBe4 Platform

Phish-prone Percentage (PPP) is KnowBe4's metric for the share of employees likely to engage with a simulated phishing message. The KnowBe4 platform also assigns each employee a Risk Score from its SmartRisk Engine, which KnowBe4 says analyzes 316 indicators and rolls up to group and organization level.

KnowBe4 lists three further risk signals, all limited to SAT Advanced, alongside the Risk Score:

• Email Exposure Check Pro: A monthly email exposure report,
• PasswordIQ: Monitoring of Active Directory passwords,
• Second Chance: A pre-click warning in Outlook and Microsoft 365 that gives an employee a moment to reconsider a link.

Real-Time Coaching is a KnowBe4 feature that sends SecurityTips through Slack, Microsoft Teams, Google Chat, or email when connected security tools detect risky behavior. KnowBe4 lists more than 20 coaching categories and more than 25 third-party integrations, including CrowdStrike, Microsoft Defender, Okta, and Splunk, alongside more than 60 built-in reports, executive reports, and industry benchmarking.

Behavior measures such as reporting rates and repeat clicks show whether cybersecurity awareness training changes what employees do under pressure, which completion rates cannot show on their own. Risk scores tied to signals from other security tools extend that view from simulated phishing to everyday behavior.

KnowBe4 AI Features in the Cybersecurity Awareness Training Platform

KnowBe4 lists 12 AI Defense Agents in production as of October 2026, all included in SAT Advanced, while SAT Foundation receives what KnowBe4 calls select AI features. These KnowBe4 AI features extend the cybersecurity awareness training platform from content delivery into automated decisions about which employee receives which test and lesson.

Beyond Orchestration and its three sub-agents, KnowBe4 describes eight agents that generate templates, content, and assessments:

• Template Generation Agent: Writes phishing templates with indicators based on the NIST Phish Scale User Guide, NIST Technical Note 2276 (2023),
• Callback Template Generation Agent: Produces templates for callback phishing tests,
• Recommended Landing Pages Agent: Suggests the landing page shown after an employee clicks an AI-generated template,
• Knowledge Refresher Agent: Assigns short scenario-based refreshers at set intervals,
• Policy Quiz Agent: Builds quizzes from an organization's own policies,
• Deepfake Training Content Agent: Creates deepfake lessons featuring a leader from the customer's own organization,
• Custom SAPA Agent: Builds custom Security Awareness Proficiency Assessments,
• Content Creation Agent: The 12th agent, launched on May 5, 2026, which turns prompts or internal policies into custom multilingual courses.

KnowBe4 Features and Add-On Products Beyond Core Training

Five KnowBe4 features sit outside the core cybersecurity awareness training subscription as add-ons or separate products, according to KnowBe4:

• Compliance Plus: A compliance and HR library covering ethics, HR, and workplace conduct, plus regulatory courses such as HIPAA, PCI DSS, and GDPR, with brandable modules and uploads of the customer's own policies;
• Third-Party Integrations: Unlimited Real-Time Coaching integrations beyond the five included in the core subscription;
• PhishER Plus: Triage and incident response for the emails employees report, sold as an add-on or as a stand-alone product;
• KnowBe4 Defend and Prevent: Inbound and outbound email security products, which KnowBe4 groups with Messaging Security in its email and collaboration security family;
• Agent Risk Manager: An AI agent security product that KnowBe4 announced as launched on April 14, 2026, and opened to SAT Advanced customers through early access in August 2026.

According to the FBI's 2025 IC3 Annual Report, business email compromise (BEC) accounted for $3,046,598,558 in reported losses across 24,768 complaints in 2025. Pairing cloud email security with employee reporting addresses that exposure from two directions, since filters stop known lures and trained employees flag the requests filters miss.

Feature lists describe what a training library contains, while cyberattackers exploit whichever channel(s) employees have never practiced. Adaptive Security tests voice, SMS, email, and deepfake responses in one unified program.

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KnowBe4 Security Awareness Training Tiers and Contract Terms in 2026

Since May 5, 2026, KnowBe4 security awareness training has been sold in two tiers, SAT Foundation and SAT Advanced, which differ in library size, AI agent access, and Smart Groups. KnowBe4's published terms favor multi-year commitments, which shapes the cost of changing course later.

KnowBe4 SAT Foundation Versus SAT Advanced by Library and AI Access

KnowBe4 replaced its four legacy levels with SAT Foundation and SAT Advanced on May 5, 2026, and labels SAT Advanced its most popular tier. KnowBe4's pricing page text confirms three differences, and its SAT Foundation and Advanced datasheet reserves further features, such as callback phishing, USB and QR code tests, PasswordIQ, and Second Chance, for SAT Advanced.

The table below compares the two KnowBe4 training tiers by training library, AI Defense Agents, and Smart Groups, the three differences KnowBe4's pricing page states in its text.

SAT Foundation fits organizations that need core phishing simulation and a smaller library, while SAT Advanced fits organizations that want the full library and automated, AI-driven program management. Buyers should confirm the full feature-by-tier list in writing before signing.

According to IBM's Cost of a Data Breach Report 2026, one in four malicious breaches were AI-enabled, a 56% increase, with an average cost of $6 million. That trend makes SAT Advanced’s full training library and complete AI Defense Agents suite a material factor in tier selection.

Legacy Silver, Gold, Platinum, and Diamond KnowBe4 Training Tiers

Before May 2026, KnowBe4 sold KnowBe4 training in four cumulative levels built on three Training Access Levels:

• Silver: Training Access Level I, with KMSAT content in 45- and 15-minute versions, newsletters, and posters, plus unlimited phishing tests, assessments, and reporting,
• Gold: Silver plus Training Access Level II, which added more KnowBe4 modules and audiocasts, along with monthly Email Exposure Check reports,
• Platinum: Gold plus advanced phishing features such as Smart Groups and reporting APIs,
• Diamond: Platinum plus Training Access Level III, the full library.

Under the legacy structure, SecurityCoach was available only with Platinum or Diamond, while Compliance Plus and PhishER could be added at any level. Legacy datasheets priced the subscription per seat, per year.

KnowBe4's May 2026 announcement still refers to customers on KSAT Diamond with AIDA, which explains why KnowBe4 security awareness training reviews and AI-generated answers continue to cite the legacy names.

KnowBe4 Training Contract and Renewal Terms

KnowBe4's Terms of Service, last updated December 16, 2025, set five conditions that matter to KnowBe4 training buyers:

• Auto-renewal: Subscriptions renew for a period equal to the prior term unless written notice arrives at least 30 days before the term ends;
• No refunds: Sales are final except where the terms state otherwise;
• No mid-term reductions: Subscription terms and seat quantities cannot decrease during a term;
• Seat reassignment: Fees follow purchased seats regardless of usage, and seats move freely between employees only for normal workforce attrition;
• Early termination: Termination for convenience requires 30 days' notice and brings no refund, and on quotes with a set subscription term, the remaining recurring fees become due immediately.

The same terms state that prices may be subject to increases, including when services are added or upgraded mid-term. Teams comparing security awareness training cost by company size or considering switching from KnowBe4 should map these dates well before the renewal window opens.

Use Adaptive Security's phishing simulations to measure how employees respond to voice, text, and deepfake lures before the next renewal decision.

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Who Uses KnowBe4 Cybersecurity Awareness Training?

KnowBe4 cybersecurity awareness training serves organizations from 25-seat businesses to enterprises and government agencies, sold directly and through managed service providers (MSPs). As of October 2026, KnowBe4 lists customers in banking, healthcare, education, government, insurance, legal, and utilities, among other industries.

KnowBe4 Security Awareness Training by Company Size

KnowBe4 publishes standard seat bands for KnowBe4 security awareness training starting at 25 seats and moves organizations above 1,000 seats to custom quotes. KnowBe4 also sells through AWS Marketplace, which it positions for organizations of up to 500 users.

According to the UK Department for Science, Innovation and Technology's Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2025/2026, phishing was the most prevalent type of breach or cyberattack, experienced by 38% of UK businesses. For a small business without a dedicated security team, a cybersecurity awareness training platform that schedules tests automatically is the practical way to address that exposure.

At the enterprise end, KnowBe4 lists multi-tenant consoles, security roles, application programming interfaces (APIs), and an audit log. Reviewers on G2 are mostly mid-market organizations with 51 to 1,000 employees, with smaller groups of small-business and enterprise reviewers.

KnowBe4 Training for Government, Education, and Regulated Sectors

The FedRAMP Marketplace listing for the KnowBe4 Platform shows Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP) Moderate certification since November 14, 2023, with 24 agency authorization letters on file. KnowBe4 describes the covered KnowBe4 platform as its training service plus PhishER.

KnowBe4 reports SOC 2 Type 2, ISO 27001, and ISO 42001 audits and the UK Cyber Essentials certification, and its Terms of Service incorporate a HIPAA Business Associate Agreement where applicable. For regulated organizations, KnowBe4 training content sits beside compliance training that maps to specific legal obligations.

Education buyers can add KnowBe4 Student Edition, which covers students aged 16 and older on computer and mobile security, passwords, phishing that includes student job fraud, social media dangers, campus theft and scams, and travel data security. KnowBe4 says the student product uses the same AI agents and Real-Time Coaching as its workforce offering.

According to ENISA's ENISA Threat Landscape 2025, phishing was the dominant intrusion vector at 60%, a category that includes vishing, malspam (malicious spam), and malvertising (malicious online advertising). European public bodies and regulated firms evaluating KnowBe4 security awareness training face that intrusion pattern regardless of sector.

How MSPs Deliver KnowBe4 Cybersecurity Awareness Training Programs

KnowBe4's MSP Standards of Engagement describe two buying models for partners delivering KnowBe4 cybersecurity awareness training programs: a separate subscription per customer, or bulk subscriptions reserved for pre-approved partners. Under the bulk model, partners cannot hand seats to customers to manage themselves or move existing customer subscriptions under the bulk agreement.

KnowBe4's channel program adds deal registration, dedicated partner managers, partner margins, and annual partner awards. Multi-tenant consoles let one partner team manage separate customer environments from one place.

According to the UK Department for Science, Innovation and Technology's Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2025/2026, 19% of UK businesses provided staff cyber security training in the last 12 months. MSPs that bundle a cybersecurity awareness training program into managed services can bring that protection to clients that lack the staff to run one internally.

Smaller organizations rarely have staff to tailor phishing tests to each role, so generic lures teach generic lessons. Adaptive Security personalizes phishing simulations from public information and job role responsibilities.

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Is KnowBe4 Security Awareness Training the Market Leader in 2026?

KnowBe4 security awareness training remains the most widely adopted and most reviewed offering by self-reported adoption and review volume as of October 2026, yet no current independent analyst ranking names one market leader. Analysts are also questioning the labels they use for the category itself.

Market Signals Behind the KnowBe4 Company Position

Three signals support the KnowBe4 company position in the category:

• Customer base: A self-reported customer count that KnowBe4 publishes on its homepage,
• Review volume: Thousands of G2 reviews for KnowBe4 security awareness training,
• Category badges: Repeated G2 Leader badges in 2026, alongside a seven-year streak that KnowBe4 claims for itself,

PeerSpot data points the other way, because KnowBe4's share of research attention in the security awareness category fell sharply between November 2025 and November 2026. PeerSpot measures engagement on its own site rather than sales, so the decline reads as attention spreading across vendors.

The table below separates independent market signals from KnowBe4's own claims.

What KnowBe4 Security Awareness Training Reviews Say

KnowBe4 Security Awareness Training reviews on G2 from 2026 praise four aspects of the product:

• Campaign scheduling: Quarterly campaigns are described as simple to schedule,
• Onboarding: New starters can be enrolled automatically into baseline assessments,
• Support: Customer support is described as responsive and proactive,
• Results: A July 2026 review reports falling Phish-prone Percentages and more reporting through KnowBe4's Phish Alert Button.

Criticism in the same period centers on content variety and administration. A mid-market reviewer found the entry package's library limited over time, which matches the split between the Foundation and Advanced libraries, and a September 2026 review described settings spread across the console as overwhelming for new administrators.

A November 2023 review also notes temporary compatibility issues after Microsoft changes.

How Analyst Coverage of Cybersecurity Awareness Training Has Changed

Gartner's last Magic Quadrant for Security Awareness Computer-Based Training appeared in July 2019, followed by a Market Guide in July 2020. Forrester's 2024 human risk management evaluation assessed nine vendors in September 2024, and no newer edition had appeared as of October 2026.

On April 30, 2026, Gartner analyst Richard Addiscott published a note titled Analyst Take: Why It's Time to Drop "Human Risk Management" as a Market Name. The category that buyers searched for as security awareness training, and later as human risk management, therefore has no settled analyst label in 2026.

Without a current ranking for cybersecurity awareness training, buyers carry more of the evaluation themselves. Peer reviews, trial results, and contract terms now do the work that one analyst placement once did.

Adaptive Security gives leadership direct evidence about risk, scoring how each department and role responds to realistic email, voice, and SMS phishing simulations so security teams can prioritize training where it matters most.

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How Cybersecurity Awareness Training Is Changing in 2026

Cybersecurity awareness training is changing in 2026 along three documented lines: AI-enabled social engineering, cyberattacks that move beyond email, and employee use of AI tools outside approved accounts. KnowBe4 and every other vendor in the category are responding to the same pressures.

How Deepfakes Reshape Cybersecurity Awareness Training

According to the FBI's 2025 IC3 Annual Report, the Internet Crime Complaint Center received 22,364 AI-related complaints with $893,346,472 in adjusted losses, in the report's first dedicated section on AI. Those complaints show AI-enabled fraud moving into routine reporting by victims.

For organizations, deepfakes create two concrete exposures: voice-cloned payment requests that reach finance staff, and deepfake candidates in online job interviews that reach hiring teams. Both exploit trust in a familiar voice or face, which is why training against deepfake phishing attacks now features in cybersecurity awareness training programs. AI phishing simulations recreate those requests in a controlled setting before a cyberattacker attempts them.

According to Gartner's Gartner Survey Finds 41 Percent of CISOs Reported at Least One Social Engineering Incident Involving a Deepfake in the Past 12 Months (2026), 41% of the 297 CISOs surveyed between March and May 2026 reported at least one social engineering incident involving a deepfake on an employee audio call. KnowBe4 offers a Deepfake Training Content Agent and lists custom deepfake vishing scenarios using AI voice cloning as a completed capability.

Social Engineering Beyond Email and KnowBe4 Phishing Simulation

Voice calls and text messages reach employees on personal devices, away from the email filters that screen most corporate phishing. Those channels also leave less time to reflect, because a ringing phone or an urgent text pushes for an immediate answer.

According to Verizon's 2026 Data Breach Investigations Report, median click rates for mobile-centric vectors such as voice and text were 40% higher than email in phishing simulations. Testing that stops at the inbox therefore misses the channels where employees perform worst.

Callback phishing shows how cyberattackers combine channels: an email supplies a phone number, and the employee who calls it reaches a live operator who asks for credentials or a payment. Training that treats email and voice as separate topics leaves that hand-off between channels unpracticed.

KnowBe4 says KnowBe4 phishing simulation covers vishing and callback phishing, with smishing handled through training content, so the question for any buyer is how realistic and frequent those voice and text tests are. Comparing phishing simulation tools for email, voice, and deepfake threats on that basis gives a fairer picture than counting templates.

Employee AI Use in the Cybersecurity Awareness Training Program

According to Verizon's 2026 Data Breach Investigations Report, 45% of employees are regular AI users, up from 15%, and 67% use non-corporate accounts. Shadow AI, the use of AI tools outside approved accounts and policies, now belongs in every cybersecurity awareness training program as an insider risk topic.

Shadow AI lessons teach employees which tools are approved, which account to sign in with, and which categories of data, such as customer records, credentials, and source code, must never enter a prompt. AI governance sets the policy those lessons enforce, so the two work best when the same team owns both.

Vendors, KnowBe4 included, have added shadow AI modules to their cybersecurity awareness training libraries in response. The practical test for any library is whether its shadow AI content can reflect the organization's own approved tool list, which generic modules cannot know.

From Cybersecurity Awareness Training to Human Risk Management

Human risk management is a security discipline that measures and reduces the risk created by employee behavior through continuous scoring, coaching, and targeted lessons. Risk scores, real-time coaching, and AI agent security show cybersecurity awareness training moving from content libraries toward that model, which organizations planning human risk management for enterprise programs now evaluate as one function.

KnowBe4's own path illustrates the shift, from a 2012 course library to the HRM+ brand in November 2024 and an agent security product in 2026. KnowBe4's 2026 positioning, which covers AI agents alongside employees, points to the next measurement target for the whole category.

What happens when an employee receives a convincing after-hours text from a cyberattacker posing as the help desk? Adaptive Security prepares employees for that moment through targeted smishing simulations.

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Security Awareness Platform Evaluation Framework for KnowBe4

The Security Awareness Platform Evaluation Framework is a six-criteria method that compares any cybersecurity awareness training platform on the same evidence, from channel coverage to contract terms. Applied to KnowBe4 security awareness training, it records what is verified or self-reported without scoring the product.

Six Criteria Enterprises Should Use to Evaluate Security Awareness Training Platforms

According to Verizon's 2026 Data Breach Investigations Report, pretexting (a fabricated scenario used to win a target's trust) reached 6% of all breaches as an initial access vector, while phishing remained at 16%. Because cyberattackers now open with invented scenarios as well as malicious email, channel coverage leads the six criteria.

For enterprises without dedicated awareness-training staff, the practical question is not only which cybersecurity awareness training platform offers the most features, but which can operationalize those features consistently across the workforce. The framework evaluates every cybersecurity awareness training platform against six criteria:

1. 1Channel coverage: Testing reaches email, voice, SMS, deepfake, and physical lures within one program. Useful evidence is a sample campaign for each channel, run against a pilot group during a trial;
2. 2Content currency and customization: The library updates on a set cadence, covers AI-era topics, and lets the organization edit or create content. Useful evidence is the vendor's release history for the past year and a test edit of one module;
3. 3Personalization and automation: Tests and lessons adapt to each employee's role and behavior without adding administrator workload. Useful evidence is a demonstration of how two employees in different roles receive different content;
4. 4Behavior and risk measurement: Reporting goes beyond click rates to reporting rates, risk scores, and board-ready summaries. Useful evidence is a sample executive report built from trial data;
5. 5Real-time reinforcement and response: Coaching reaches employees inside collaboration tools, and reported emails reach a triage workflow quickly. Useful evidence is the time from a reported test email to a coaching message during the trial;
6. 6Commercial and deployment fit: Term length, renewal conditions, provisioning, learning management system (LMS) export, and security attestations suit the buyer. Useful evidence is the full contract, including renewal and termination clauses, reviewed before procurement.

The table below applies the six criteria to KnowBe4 security awareness training, labeling each KnowBe4 entry as KnowBe4-reported or verified. Each criterion asks for evidence a buyer can request during a trial or contract review, which keeps the comparison consistent across vendors.

Applying the Framework to KnowBe4 Security Awareness Training

Applied to KnowBe4 security awareness training, the framework shows documented breadth in library scale, measurement, integrations, and government authorization. On commercial and deployment fit, KnowBe4's published terms favor long commitments, which raises the cost of a wrong choice.

Customization is the criterion where KnowBe4's own materials point in two directions. The Content Creation Agent generates new courses, while KnowBe4's UK G-Cloud listing describes its existing content as not directly customizable, with customization offered as a paid service.

Buyers can put six questions to any vendor, including KnowBe4, one for each criterion:

• Channel realism: How often voice, text, and deepfake tests run and how closely they mirror live cyberattacks,
• Content control: Which existing modules the organization can edit, and which require a paid service,
• Targeting logic: How the cybersecurity awareness training platform decides which employee receives which test and lesson,
• Measurement depth: Which metrics beyond click rate reach the board,
• Response speed: How quickly coaching follows a risky action or a reported email,
• Exit terms: What happens to seats, data, and fees if the organization changes vendors mid-term.

According to Gartner's Gartner Survey Finds 41 Percent of CISOs Reported at Least One Social Engineering Incident Involving a Deepfake in the Past 12 Months (2026), 58% of CISOs surveyed reported a vishing or smishing incident. Channel coverage is therefore the first question for any shortlist, and organizations comparing KnowBe4 alternatives and competitors can apply the same six criteria to each option.

If a framework review shows that voice, text, and deepfake channels have never been tested, the shortlist has a first gap to close. Adaptive Security closes it with multi-channel phishing simulations.

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Alternative Cybersecurity Awareness Training Platform for Enterprises

For enterprises comparing KnowBe4 security awareness training with alternatives, Adaptive Security provides phishing simulations across email, voice, SMS, and deepfake channels, personalized from open-source intelligence (OSINT) and each employee's role. Security teams gain a realistic baseline showing which departments act on a cloned voice or a fraudulent text before a cyberattacker tests them.

Employees receive cybersecurity awareness training that keeps pace with new cyberattack patterns and arrives at the moment of a mistake instead of months later in an annual course. Adaptive Security's security awareness training pairs an editable library with AI Content Studio for custom content, so security teams can adapt lessons to the systems, approval steps, and terminology their employees use every day. Just-in-time remediation then delivers a short lesson the moment an employee fails a phishing simulation, while the scenario is still fresh.

Leadership gains behavior-based risk visibility by department, role, and individual, the evidence that the behavior measurement and real-time reinforcement criteria of the Security Awareness Platform Evaluation Framework call for. Adaptive Security's human risk monitoring feeds those risk scores back into training assignments and produces board-ready reporting that shows which teams improve after each campaign and which roles still act on fraudulent requests.

See how Adaptive Security builds phishing simulations from each employee's digital footprint and role, then measures responses across email, voice, SMS, and video channels in one comprehensive training program.

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Frequently Asked Questions About KnowBe4 Security Awareness Training

Is There a 15-Minute KnowBe4 Security Awareness Training?

Yes, KnowBe4’s courseware roadmap lists the 2027 Security Awareness Training in 15-, 30-, and 45-minute versions. SAT Foundation also includes five-minute micro modules for staff and executives. KnowBe4 training length therefore depends on which version an administrator assigns and how much time employees can set aside.

How Much Does KnowBe4 Security Awareness Training Cost?

KnowBe4 prices KnowBe4 security awareness training per seat per month on three-year terms, with lower per-seat rates for larger seat bands and custom quotes above 1,000 seats. SAT Advanced costs more than SAT Foundation, and add-ons such as Compliance Plus and PhishER Plus are priced separately. KnowBe4 states that its list pricing can change at any time and may vary by region.

Are KnowBe4 Security Awareness Training Quiz Answers Available?

KnowBe4 assessments measure what each employee has learned, which makes looking up answers counterproductive for both the employee and the organization. Administrators can set passing scores and let employees test out of content they already know. An employee who struggles with a KnowBe4 security awareness training module should retake it or contact the organization's security team for help.

Is KnowBe4 Training Legit?

Yes, KnowBe4 training comes from an established company formed in 2010 and listed on Nasdaq from 2021 until Vista Equity Partners took it private in February 2023. The KnowBe4 Platform has held FedRAMP Moderate certification since November 2023. Employees normally receive the training because their own organization assigned it, so an enrollment message from the employer's program is expected.

Is a KnowBe4 Email a Phishing Email?

A KnowBe4 email is usually either an enrollment message from the employee's organization or a test sent through KnowBe4 phishing simulation. Employees should still treat any unexpected message with care and report it through the organization's process, such as KnowBe4's Phish Alert Button. Reporting is the correct response whether the message turns out to be a test or a genuine cyberattack.

Is KnowBe4 Security Awareness Training Free?

No, KnowBe4 security awareness training is a paid subscription. KnowBe4 does offer free tools, including a baseline phishing test, a Phish Alert Button add-in, a preview of its content library, and annual Cybersecurity Awareness Month resource kits. Organizations can also request an evaluation account, which KnowBe4's Terms of Service set at 30 days by default.

Can KnowBe4 Training Content Run in Another LMS?

Yes, KnowBe4 lets customers run KnowBe4 training content in their own learning management system (LMS) by downloading modules, videos, games, and audiocasts as SCORM 2004, SCORM 1.2, or MP4 files. SCORM is a packaging standard that most LMS products accept. KnowBe4's multilingual SCORM packages link every language version of a module in one file.

How Many Languages Does KnowBe4 Security Awareness Training Support?

KnowBe4 lists 35 languages and variants with full support for KnowBe4 security awareness training and 11 more with limited support. Its marketing cites 47+ professionally localized languages and AI translation for 51+, so the figure an organization sees depends on which KnowBe4 page it reads. Traditional Chinese is fully supported in both Cantonese and Mandarin variants.

Annual compliance modules track course completion, while Adaptive Security measures how susceptible employees are to realistic social engineering attacks across every channel.

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