10 cybersecurity awareness month ideas to engage your employees

Nearly all organizations and their employees face cybersecurity incidents periodically. According to Verizon's Data Breach Investigations Report, 68% of attacks involved a human element that was non-malicious in nature. This number makes it clear that humans are the most vulnerable point of entry, making them an attractive target for threat actors. The best way to combat such threats is by ensuring efficient cybersecurity awareness for employees. 

While it's important for organizations to train employees around the clock, October is specifically dedicated to enhancing cybersecurity awareness across the globe. Throughout the month, companies focus on imparting awareness to their employees, which in turn will contribute to a better security posture. 

With Cybersecurity Awareness Month underway, it's important for IT admins and security teams to find engaging ways to get their employees involved in improving their security awareness and paving the way for better online security. In this article, we'll share why cybersecurity awareness is important and give you 10 engaging ways you can involve your employees for security training in innovative ways.

What is Cybersecurity Awareness Month?

Cybersecurity Awareness Month (CAM) is a global initiative that takes place every October that's organized to improve security posture and increase awareness for individuals and organizations across the world. These efforts are aimed to make internet users aware about the different ways in which threat actors can launch attacks, steal sensitive data, and hack into systems to spy on day-to-day activities. 

The goal of this initiative is to empower people to protect themselves on the internet and help them make informed decisions. Through simulation of phishing attacks, malware emails, and other such threats, IT admins train their users to keep up strong security habits through simple and actionable steps. 

Why is CAM important?

People deal with cyber threats on an everyday basis. Whether they choose to engage and fall prey to it or report it and stay secure is what makes the difference between a threat actor attaining their goals or failing. CAM empowers people with the knowledge and information they need to make such informed choices. Training and awareness programs conducted during CAM—aided by periodic workshops and simulations—ensures that employees are aware of their responsibilities on the internet, strengthening their security and their organization's on the internet. 

10 ways to engage employees this CAM

Instead of using the age-old practice of conducting workshops and simulations, several other methods can be adopted to get employees interested in cybersecurity without them seeing it as a chore. This way, instead of people losing interest during the month, you can keep them engaged throughout and enhance their security awareness. Let's explore a few unique ways to make security awareness interesting. 

Awareness posters

Narrow down specific security topics that are important for your organization and curate witty and actionable content that is conveyed to your employees through posters. You can make these posters more interesting by clubbing them with real-life security incidents that took place in your workplace. Such inclusions make the scenario seem imminent and encourage your employees to take actions to prevent them in future. 

Put up these posters across different locations such as common gathering areas, cafeterias, meeting rooms, the reception, and working bays. If people keep seeing the same posters, it'll lead to fatigue and the idea won't stick well. Keep rotating different posters across the different areas. This also ensures that everyone gets their eyes on various aspects of security measures that you want to promote. 

Tips to make posters engaging:

➤ Include actionable tips instead of keeping the advice generic.
➤ Link each poster to relevant training modules or quizzes to point interested employees in the right direction.
➤ Go beyond physical posters and include desktop wallpapers, chat themes, backgrounds, and more to capture attention.
➤ Rotate posters between different spaces in your workplace to get eyes on different cyber tips. 
➤ Use animated elements or fix on a certain theme or character to get different points across.

Must-do lists

At the beginning of the month, in organization-wide groups or channels, announce the important activities or measures you want to get done across the company by the end of the month. Instead of treating it as just a checklist of items to get done, get your employees to understand the importance of every new measure you're trying to implement, the benefits of adopting such measures, and the long-term repercussions of not setting them up.

This gives employees actionable ways to adopt security measures within a set timeframe. Setting this as a personal goal for employees and rewarding departments who complete it efficiently gives them the nudge needed to process these measures actively. Through the month, send weekly reminders and make public announcements congratulating the departments who've ticked off these lists to get all employees to complete them on time. Appoint security champions to help others with the process of adopting these measures.

Following is a sample list of security measures that can be implemented across the board:

➤ Set a passphrase that hasn't been previously used.
➤ Adopt a password manager like Zoho Vault to manage passwords.
➤ Learn to spot the red flags that point to malicious activity.
➤ Stay updated on the company-adopted threat-reporting behavior.
➤ Update software and install patches immediately.

Conduct talks by security experts 

While your security team may conduct periodic workshops and awareness programs, it's also important to get an outsider's perspective from an industry expert. Locate security experts who are familiar with the laws and regulations specific to your industry and region and invite them to identify weak areas in your company and address those elements in a talk to your employees.

Encourage them to share cyberattack stories faced by similar industries and the repercussions caused due to these attacks. Stressing the financial and reputational loss that resulted from these attacks will drive home the point of security being of upmost importance. Planning these talks in a story-driven format will ensure that the key principles of security are etched in your employees' minds. Associating these talks with the programs run by your internal security team will be very effective.

Plan a lunch-and-learn

Lunch-and-learns are a time-honored way of combining casual learning with a relaxed, engaging environment. Employees can grab their lunch, settle in, and spend an hour exploring key cybersecurity topics, such as identifying phishing attempts, creating strong passwords, or securing remote work setups. To make the session more interactive, invite your IT or security team to share real-world examples or demonstrate how attacks unfold.

You can also encourage questions or showcase short videos that simplify complex concepts. The informal setup helps employees feel comfortable participating and asking questions they may not in a formal training. Plus, offering a light meal or snacks is an easy incentive to boost attendance. By making cybersecurity education approachable and conversational, lunch and learns turn a technical subject into something every employee can relate to and act on.

Ensure that IT teams share security tips periodically 

Consistent communication from your IT or security team not just during CAM but throughout the year helps keep cybersecurity top of mind for employees all year long. When employees receive regular reminders, it reinforces good habits and builds a culture of vigilance.

Here are a few ways IT teams can share security tips effectively:

Weekly or biweekly emails: Send out short, digestible tips like how to spot phishing emails or why software updates matter.

Chat or intranet posts: Share quick “security bytes” on internal chat channels.

Screensavers or digital posters: Display reminders like “Lock your screen before you leave your desk” on office screens.

Video or infographic snippets: Use visuals to make complex topics, such as MFA password management or malware, easier to understand.

By keeping tips regular and easy to absorb, IT teams can help employees stay alert and proactive against evolving threats.

Conduct awareness trainings 

CAM is the perfect time to reinforce your organization’s commitment to digital safety through structured awareness trainings. These sessions help employees understand the evolving threat landscape and their role in defending against it. Cover essentials like phishing awareness, password hygiene, secure data handling, and safe remote work practices. When employees see how these lessons connect to their daily tasks, they’re more likely to put them into action.

To make the sessions memorable, focus on interaction and real-world relevance. Include quick quizzes or demonstrations that show how easily attackers can exploit common mistakes. Follow up with short refresher materials throughout the month to keep the momentum going. Awareness trainings conducted during CAM help foster a long-term culture of security mindfulness across your organization.

Plan security open houses 

A security open house is an engaging, hands-on way to make cybersecurity approachable. Instead of formal training, create a relaxed setup with demo stations or booths where employees can explore topics like spotting phishing attempts, securing passwords, or protecting sensitive data. IT and security teams can showcase real-world tools, share examples, and walk employees through common scenarios. These open houses give employees the freedom to learn at their own pace and interact directly with experts.

To encourage open dialogue, include a private Q&A corner where employees can ask questions one-on-one without hesitation or embarrassment. Many people hesitate to admit what they don’t know in group settings, so offering a safe, judgment-free space helps them learn more comfortably. Combine this with security games, or quick challenges to make learning fun.

Routine phishing simulations 

Running regular phishing simulations is one of the most effective ways to gauge and strengthen employees’ security awareness. These controlled tests mimic real-world phishing attempts such as fake invoice emails, password reset notices, or delivery updates to see how employees respond. Instead of being punitive, use them as teachable moments. When someone clicks on a simulated malicious link, provide instant feedback that explains the red flags they missed, like mismatched sender addresses, urgent tone, unwarranted emails, or suspicious URLs. This immediate reinforcement helps the lesson stick.

To get the best results, run simulations periodically and vary the difficulty and type of attack each time. Start with simple, obvious scams and gradually introduce more sophisticated ones. Track improvement rates and share anonymized results to motivate teams without shaming anyone. Over time, routine phishing simulations transform awareness into instinct, helping employees recognize and report real phishing attempts before any damage is done.

Conduct a quiz 

Quizzes are a quick, engaging way to reinforce cybersecurity lessons and test how well employees retain what they’ve learned during CAM. Create short, scenario-based questions that reflect real-life situations such as identifying suspicious email links, choosing the strongest password, or deciding what to do after receiving a suspicious attachment. Keep the tone light and fun, but make sure each question delivers a takeaway that employees can apply immediately.

You can host the quiz online or in person, and even use interactive formats like rapid-fire rounds or timed challenges to keep energy levels high. After the quiz, share the correct answers with brief explanations to reinforce learning. A well-designed quiz measures awareness while turning cybersecurity education into a friendly competition that encourages active participation and continuous learning.

Reward cyber champions  

Recognizing and rewarding employees who consistently follow security best practices is a powerful way to sustain awareness beyond CAM. These cyber champions set an example for others within their teams. Highlighting their efforts in internal newsletters, meetings, or on company channels helps reinforce the importance of cybersecurity.

To make the initiative engaging, introduce a points-based system or monthly recognition program where employees earn rewards for completing security trainings, spotting simulated phishing attempts, or sharing helpful security tips. Small incentives such as mementos, gift cards, badges, or certificates go a long way in keeping motivation high.

Wrapping up 

Cybersecurity Awareness Month is an opportunity to build lasting habits that strengthen your organization’s defenses. By engaging employees through interactive sessions, regular tips, and recognition programs, you turn awareness into everyday action. The goal is to empower everyone to play their part in keeping data and communication secure. When security becomes part of your workplace culture, people become your strongest line of defense.

Awareness is the first step and protection is the next. Protect your organization from evolving cyber threats with Zoho eProtect. eProtect is a cloud-based email security and archiving solution that provides an additional layer of security for email accounts. The solution offers advanced threat detection mechanisms that can secure on-premise and cloud email accounts from evolving email threats. eProtect is the security solution powering Zoho Mail, a platform trusted by millions of users.