Why Smart People Still Get Phished

The Psychology of Phishing Susceptibility (MoPS Framework)

What you’ll learn
Recognise emotional and situational triggers that increase susceptibility
Identify your personal phishing susceptibility profile
Apply psychological defense strategies to real-world phishing scenarios
Build lasting cyber-resilience habits

Requirements
No experience needed.

Description
Firewalls are strong. Spam filters are smarter than ever.So why do intelligent, well-trained professionals still fall for phishing scams?Because hackers don’t hack systems — they hack people.This course goes beyond technical checklists and awareness posters to uncover the psychological mechanics behind phishing success. You’ll learn why intelligence, experience, and good intentions are not reliable protection — and what actually works instead.Built around the MoPS Framework (Model of Phishing Susceptibility), this course helps you understand how personality, emotion, and situational pressure combine to drive real-world phishing mistakes — at work and at home.What Makes This Course DifferentMost cybersecurity courses focus on what phishing looks like.This course focuses on why it works.You’ll explore:- A practical phishing personality assessment that reveals your natural risk tendencies- Psychological trigger phrases scammers rely on — and how to neutralise them- Case studies from major real-world breaches where the failure started with a human response, not a technical flaw- How modern phishing has evolved to include AI, deepfakes, voice phishing (vishing), and social-proof attacksInstead of blaming users, this course teaches self-awareness as a security skill.What You’ll LearnBy the end of this course, you will be able to:- Understand why awareness alone isn’t enough to stop phishing- Identify your personal phishing susceptibility profile using the MoPS framework- Recognise how emotions like fear, urgency, empathy, and curiosity override rational thinking- Spot high-risk situations where even cautious people make bad security decisions- Break down real-world phishing techniques including:- Spear phishing- Clone phishing- CEO / gift card scams- Whaling attacks- Multi-phase and “attack-from-within” scams- Apply the Spot – Pause – Verify method to reduce phishing risk immediately- Build habits that make phishing attacks harder to execute — even under pressureInstructorThe course is taught by Justin Fong, a former military security officer and operational security professional with over 30 years of experience in communications, crisis response, and behavioural risk. Trained in psychology, Justin specialises in teaching the human side of cybersecurity — where most real breaches begin.

Who this course is for
Working professionals
IT and cybersecurity practitioners
Managers and team leads
Anyone interested in psychology or human behaviour

https://www.udemy.com/course/why-smart-people-still-get-phished/