Your HR Email Might Be a Trap Why Canadian Businesses Must Act Now

A recent report by KnowBe4 highlights a troubling trend: phishing emails disguised as internal HR communications are now among the most clicked by employees. During Q2 2025, 98.4% of the top 10 most-clicked phishing emails were internal-themed, with HR-related messages accounting for a staggering 42.5% of all phishing failures.

The most successful phishing subject line? A simple, familiar message: "Microsoft Teams: You have been added as a guest to [[company_name]] Strategic Planning." Others included requests for reimbursements, dress code updates, performance reviews, and time-off approvals topics that employees interact with regularly and without hesitation.

This data confirms a growing issue in cybersecurity: threat actors are no longer relying on generic spam or obvious scams. They're imitating our colleagues, using language and platforms we trust, and playing into our instinct to respond quickly to workplace updates. The rise in scanned QR codes and fake video conferences some even powered by deepfake technology is making these attacks harder to spot and more costly to ignore.

For Canadian businesses, this is a wake-up call. Cybercriminals are moving beyond malware and brute-force attacks. They’re leveraging social engineering, psychology, and AI to breach systems in ways traditional tools can’t always catch. The human layer of security your employees is now one of the most frequently exploited vulnerabilities.

This evolving threat landscape demands a more proactive approach. It’s not just about spam filters or antivirus software anymore. Organizations need to prioritize security awareness training and real-time threat detection that evolves as attackers do.

Directpath Global Technologies (DGT) offers a tailored and comprehensive approach to this challenge. As a Canada-based MSSP, we provide advanced services like Mobile Threat Defense (MTD), Extended Detection and Response (XDR), Vulnerability Assessments (VAPT), Web Application Firewall (WAF), and System Organization Controls Type 2 (SOC2). Our Virtual CISO (vCISO) service and Vulnerability Risk Management as a Service (VRMaaS) help businesses design long-term strategies, while our AI Division ensures our solutions adapt to your specific operational needs.

The key takeaway? Don’t wait for a phishing email to slip through or a deepfake call to cost your team millions. Employee instincts may be human but your cybersecurity strategy should be smarter, faster, and more prepared. The threats are already inside the inbox. It’s time to fight back. Source: Human Resources Director CA