Strengthening Defenses Against AI-Driven Social Engineering

Psionic's Rob Shapland on Training That Helps Employees Resist AI-Driven Attacks Tony Morbin (@tonymorbin) • January 1, 2026

The easier that deepfakes and voice cloning are to do, the more that social engineering attacks are becoming more personalized and believable. Criminals now use artificial intelligence to impersonate executives and trick employees into approving fraudulent transactions or bypassing multifactor authentication protections, said Rob Shapland, director and ethical hacker at Psionic.

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Standard cybersecurity training for employees often isn't enough. Shapland said real behavioral change happens when organizations go beyond quizzes and deliver training that sticks - through storytelling, hidden-camera simulations and practical followups that reinforce lessons over time.

"Storytelling is the best way to get people to remember things," Shapland said. "If you show them how a criminal could actually pull off an attack using their badge or their info, that makes it ...