In short: Bitdefender Phishing Simulation Service is a consultant-led exercise from Bitdefender's Offensive Services, not software you switch on. Experts design tailored campaigns, from organisation-wide drills to research-driven spear phishing aimed at executives, and deliver executive and technical reports with root-cause analysis and recommendations. Optional follow-up training runs through a learning management system.
What the service is
Most security awareness training vendors sell software you run yourself. Bitdefender's Phishing Simulation Service is different: it is a professional service listed under Bitdefender's Offensive Services, alongside penetration testing, red teaming and cloud security assessment, and it is delivered by Bitdefender's consultants rather than switched on in a console.
Instead of choosing templates from a library, you agree objectives and scope with the Bitdefender team. They design campaigns that reflect your organisation, run them, analyse the results and report back with recommendations.
Exercise packages
| Package | What it covers |
|---|---|
| Spear phishing (executive and high-risk roles) | Research-driven simulations aimed at executives and critical functions, using open-source intelligence (OSINT) reconnaissance and business email compromise (BEC) scenarios, with an executive summary report |
| Organisation-wide phishing drill | A baseline of resilience across the whole workforce, consultant-led or run through an LMS, with tiered difficulty and trend analysis by group or region |
| Phishing plus playbooks | The organisation-wide drill plus a review of reporting channels, mailbox rules, triage and escalation, with updated playbooks |
An optional reassessment repeats the exercise later to show whether behaviour has improved across teams and individuals.
Attack scenarios Bitdefender can emulate
- Click-only lures, to measure who follows a suspicious link
- Credential harvesting, with a fake sign-in page
- Malicious links and malware delivery, measured at each step of the attack chain
- QR code and SMS phishing, which move the attack off the protected inbox
- MFA fatigue, where users are pushed to approve repeated sign-in prompts
- Executive impersonation and BEC, aimed at payments and sensitive data
Each campaign can include controlled variants so difficulty can be adjusted, and success is judged not only on clicks but on credential submission, reporting behaviour and how your security team responds. See QR code phishing awareness and business email compromise training.
Executive tests are especially useful because senior people are prime targets for payment fraud and deepfake-assisted requests. See cyber security training for board members and AI phishing and deepfake awareness.
Follow-up training through an LMS
Campaigns can optionally be paired with training delivered through a learning management system (LMS), which turns the exercise into a learning loop:
- Automated follow-up lessons for anyone who falls for a simulation, delivered straight after the event
- Targeted modules for repeat offenders, so people who struggle get more support
- Just-in-time coaching: real-time prompts triggered by what a user does, paired with short, role-specific micro-lessons
Reports you receive
The output is designed for two audiences:
- Executive reports that summarise key metrics, compare them with industry benchmarks and set out recommendations for the board
- Technical reports with KPIs for opens, clicks, submissions and reports
- Root-cause analysis and risk themes explaining why people fell for particular lures
- Heatmaps by role or function, showing where risk concentrates
- Updated playbooks (with the playbooks package) covering reporting channels, mailbox rules, triage, escalation criteria and communication templates
These are useful evidence for insurers and auditors. See security awareness training for cyber insurance.
Consultant-led exercise or SAT subscription?
| Bitdefender Phishing Simulation Service | Self-running SAT platform | |
|---|---|---|
| Who designs the campaigns | Bitdefender consultants, tailored to you | You or us, from a template library |
| Frequency | A defined exercise, with optional reassessment | Continuous, all year |
| Best for | Executive spear phishing tests, audits, a deep baseline | Building habits and reporting over time |
| Training | Optional LMS follow-up | Built in |
| Reporting | Expert analysis and recommendations | Dashboards and exports |
Many organisations use both: an expert exercise to find the real gaps, then a platform from our comparison table to close them month by month.
Planning an exercise responsibly
A tailored phishing exercise is powerful precisely because it feels real, so it needs careful planning:
- Clear objectives: decide what you want to learn, for example whether finance staff verify payment changes, or whether executives spot a convincing spear phishing email
- Approval and a small trusted group: a named sponsor and a few people who know the test is running, so genuine reports can be handled quickly and the exercise can be paused if needed
- Scope boundaries: agree which lures are off limits, such as fake pay rises, bereavement or health topics, which damage trust
- Data handling: agree how results are stored and who sees individual names; aggregate results are usually enough for the board
- A supportive debrief: explain the findings to staff without naming people, and focus on reporting habits
The NCSC's advice on phishing simulations favours a supportive, report-focused approach. See NCSC security awareness guidance and security culture.
How we help
We scope the exercise with you, handle the approvals and communication plan (including who in leadership knows a test is running), and help you act on the findings, whether that means targeted training, payment verification changes or tighter email security. If you want a year-round programme afterwards, we can run it as managed security awareness training. Pricing depends on scope, so ask us for a quote.
Contact us to plan an exercise.
How Forever Systems runs your awareness programme
We are vendor-independent. We compare the security awareness and phishing simulation platforms that suit your size, sector, Microsoft 365 licensing and existing security tools, recommend one, then run it for you so training and phishing tests actually happen month after month.
- Baseline phishing simulation to see where you start
- Platform selection and set-up, with single sign-on and automatic user sync from Microsoft Entra ID or Google Workspace where the platform supports it
- A year-round plan of short training modules, simulated phishing campaigns and policy sign-off, including new-starter induction
- Sector and role content for schools, charities, healthcare, legal, finance, public sector and high-risk roles such as finance teams and help desks
- Reporting for the board, auditors, insurers and Cyber Essentials, showing completion, reporting and click trends
- Joined-up defences: email security, MFA, endpoint protection and dark web monitoring so training is backed by technology
Forever Systems Ltd provides IT and cyber security services to UK organisations. Pricing depends on user numbers and platform, so ask us for a quote.
Want help choosing and running security awareness training?
Tell Forever Systems what you need and we will come back to you by email with options, not a hard sell.
Contact usFrequently asked questions
Is Bitdefender Phishing Simulation part of GravityZone?
No. Bitdefender lists it under its Offensive Services, alongside penetration testing and red teaming. It is a consultant-led service, not a product you switch on in the GravityZone console.
What attacks can a Bitdefender phishing simulation include?
Bitdefender can emulate click-only lures, credential harvesting, malicious links and malware delivery, QR code and SMS phishing, MFA fatigue, and executive impersonation or business email compromise, with controlled variants to adjust difficulty.
Can Bitdefender test our executives specifically?
Yes. The service includes targeted spear phishing campaigns for executives and other high-risk roles, as well as organisation-wide drills.
Does the service include training for people who fail?
It can. Campaigns can be paired with training through a learning management system, which sends automated follow-up lessons, targeted modules for repeat offenders and just-in-time coaching with short micro-lessons.
Is a one-off phishing test enough?
A one-off test gives a valuable snapshot, but habits fade. Most organisations follow an expert exercise with regular simulations and short training from a security awareness platform.