KnowBe4 Phishing

KnowBe4 Phishing Simulation Management

Overview

KnowBe4 phishing simulations are the core mechanism for testing and improving an organization's resilience to social engineering attacks. Campaigns deliver simulated phishing emails to users and track their interactions -- whether they opened the email, clicked the link, submitted data on the landing page, reported it via the Phish Alert Button, or took no action. The phish-prone percentage is the key metric derived from these campaigns.

Key Concepts

Campaign Lifecycle

CREATED ──> SCHEDULED ──> IN_PROGRESS ──> COMPLETED
                │                              │
                └──── CANCELLED                └──> ARCHIVED

• Created: Campaign configured but not yet scheduled
• Scheduled: Campaign queued for delivery at a specific date/time
• In Progress: Emails are being sent and interactions tracked
• Completed: Campaign delivery finished, final results available
• Cancelled: Campaign aborted before completion
• Archived: Completed campaign moved to archive

Security Test Types

Type	Description	Use Case
Phishing	Standard email with link to landing page	Most common, baseline testing
Vishing	Voice-based social engineering simulation	Phone-based attack awareness
Smishing	SMS-based phishing simulation	Mobile threat awareness
USB	Physical USB drop test	Physical security awareness
QR Code	QR code-based phishing	Emerging threat vector

Recipient Interaction States

Each recipient in a campaign progresses through trackable states:

State	Description	Indicates
Delivered	Email successfully delivered	Baseline count
Opened	Recipient opened the email	Curiosity/engagement
Clicked	Recipient clicked the phishing link	Failed the test
Replied	Recipient replied to the email	Failed the test (data leakage risk)
Attachment Opened	Recipient opened an attachment	Failed the test
Macro Enabled	Recipient enabled macros in attachment	Critical failure
Data Entered	Recipient submitted data on landing page	Critical failure
Reported	Recipient reported via Phish Alert Button	Passed the test
No Action	No interaction recorded	Neutral (may not have seen it)

Phish-Prone Percentage Calculation

The phish-prone percentage (PPP) is the primary metric for organizational risk:

function calculatePhishPronePercentage(campaign) {
  const totalDelivered = campaign.recipients.filter(r => r.delivered).length;
  const totalFailed = campaign.recipients.filter(r =>
    r.clicked || r.replied || r.attachmentOpened || r.macroEnabled || r.dataEntered
  ).length;

  if (totalDelivered === 0) return 0;
  return ((totalFailed / totalDelivered) * 100).toFixed(1);
}

Industry Benchmarks:

PPP Range	Rating	Context
0-5%	Excellent	Well-trained organization
5-15%	Good	Regular training in place
15-30%	Average	Industry baseline for new programs
30-50%	Poor	Needs immediate attention
50%+	Critical	High-risk organization

Field Reference

Campaign Fields

Field	Type	Description
campaign_id	int	Unique campaign identifier
name	string	Campaign name
status	string	Current status (created, scheduled, in_progress, completed)
create_date	datetime	When campaign was created
start_date	datetime	Scheduled start date
end_date	datetime	Campaign end date
duration_type	string	How long the campaign runs (e.g., one_week, two_weeks)
send_duration	string	Email delivery spread period
track_duration	string	How long to track interactions after delivery
frequency_type	string	One-time, weekly, bi-weekly, monthly
phishing_template_id	int	Template used for the phishing email
landing_page_id	int	Landing page shown after click
groups	array	Target groups for the campaign

Phishing Security Test (PST) Fields

Field	Type	Description
pst_id	int	Unique security test identifier
status	string	Test status
started_at	datetime	When the test began
category	object	Template category info
template	object	Email template details
landing_page	object	Landing page details
scheduled_count	int	Recipients scheduled to receive
delivered_count	int	Emails successfully delivered
opened_count	int	Emails opened
clicked_count	int	Links clicked
replied_count	int	Replies sent
attachment_open_count	int	Attachments opened
macro_enabled_count	int	Macros enabled
data_entered_count	int	Data entered on landing page
reported_count	int	Reported via PAB
bounced_count	int	Emails bounced

Recipient Fields

Field	Type	Description
recipient_id	int	Unique recipient identifier
pst_id	int	Parent security test
user	object	User details (name, email, department)
scheduled_at	datetime	When email is scheduled
delivered_at	datetime	When email was delivered
opened_at	datetime	When email was opened
clicked_at	datetime	When link was clicked
replied_at	datetime	When reply was sent
attachment_opened_at	datetime	When attachment was opened
macro_enabled_at	datetime	When macro was enabled
data_entered_at	datetime	When data was entered
reported_at	datetime	When it was reported
bounced_at	datetime	When email bounced
ip	string	IP address of interaction
browser	string	Browser used for click

MCP Tools

Tool	Description	Key Parameters
knowbe4_phishing_list_campaigns	List all phishing campaigns	status, page, per_page
knowbe4_phishing_get_campaign	Get campaign details	campaign_id
knowbe4_phishing_list_security_tests	List security tests for a campaign	campaign_id
knowbe4_phishing_get_security_test	Get detailed security test results	pst_id
knowbe4_phishing_list_recipients	List recipients for a security test	pst_id, page, per_page
knowbe4_phishing_get_recipient	Get individual recipient details	recipient_id
knowbe4_phishing_list_templates	List available phishing templates	category, page, per_page
knowbe4_phishing_get_template	Get template details	template_id

Common Workflows

Review Campaign Results

1. List campaigns to find the target campaign
2. Get campaign details for overview metrics
3. List security tests within the campaign
4. Get security test results for detailed interaction counts
5. List recipients to identify who clicked/failed
6. Calculate PPP from the results

Identify High-Risk Users

1. List completed campaigns from a date range
2. Get recipients who clicked or entered data across campaigns
3. Cross-reference with user profiles for repeat offenders
4. Generate report of users who failed multiple tests

Compare Campaign Performance Over Time

1. List all campaigns sorted by date
2. Get PPP for each campaign
3. Track trend -- PPP should decrease over time with training
4. Identify anomalies -- sudden PPP increase may indicate new attack vector or template difficulty

Post-Campaign Remediation

1. Get failed recipients from completed campaign
2. Enroll failed users in remedial training
3. Schedule follow-up test targeting the same users
4. Compare results to measure improvement

Error Handling

Common API Errors

Code	Message	Resolution
400	Invalid campaign parameters	Check date formats and required fields
401	Invalid API token	Verify KNOWBE4_API_KEY
403	Insufficient permissions	API token needs Reporting permissions
404	Campaign not found	Verify campaign_id exists
429	Rate limit exceeded	Implement backoff (see api-patterns)

Data Considerations

Issue	Cause	Resolution
Zero delivered count	Campaign just started	Wait for delivery to complete
High bounce rate	Invalid email addresses	Clean user list before next campaign
No reported count	PAB not deployed	Install Phish Alert Button
Opened count higher than delivered	Email previews/security scanners	Filter by user agent if available

Best Practices

1. Vary templates -- Use different phishing scenarios to avoid pattern recognition
2. Spread delivery -- Send over days/weeks, not all at once, to avoid "water cooler effect"
3. Track trends, not individual tests -- Single campaigns can be noisy; look at 3-6 month trends
4. Combine with training -- Auto-enroll failed users in relevant training modules
5. Use realistic scenarios -- Match templates to actual threats your clients face
6. Baseline first -- Run an initial campaign before training to establish baseline PPP
7. Report to leadership -- Share PPP trends with management to justify security awareness investment
8. Test all levels -- Include executives and IT staff, not just general users
9. Respect local regulations -- Some regions have restrictions on simulated phishing
10. Set proper tracking duration -- Allow 72 hours minimum for accurate click data

Related Skills

• KnowBe4 Training - Training campaign management and enrollment
• KnowBe4 Users - User management and risk scores
• KnowBe4 Reporting - Security awareness metrics and dashboards
• KnowBe4 API Patterns - Authentication, pagination, and rate limits