<!-- Copyright (c) 2026 defconxt. All rights reserved. -->
<!-- Licensed under AGPL-3.0 — see LICENSE file for details. -->
---
name: conducting-phishing-simulations
description: >-
  Design, execute, and measure phishing simulation campaigns to assess organizational resilience against email-based social engineering attacks.
domain: cybersecurity
subdomain: social-engineering
tags:
  - phishing
  - social-engineering
  - security-awareness
  - email-security
version: "1.0"
author: defconxt
license: AGPL-3.0
metadata:
  mitre-attack: ["T1566.001"]
---

# Conducting Phishing Simulations

## Overview

Design, execute, and measure phishing simulation campaigns to assess organizational resilience against email-based social engineering attacks.

## Prerequisites

| Requirement | Install |
|---|---|
| GoPhish | `go install github.com/gophish/gophish@latest` |
| Python 3.10+ | For agent tooling |
| SMTP relay | Authorized mail relay |

## Key Concepts

Phishing simulations test employee susceptibility to crafted emails.
Key phases: target enumeration, template creation, infrastructure setup,
campaign launch, click/credential tracking, and reporting.

## Quick Reference

```bash
gophish  # Launch GoPhish on :3333
node agent.js launch --template cred-harvest --targets employees.csv
node agent.js report --campaign-id 42 --format pdf
node agent.js analyze --campaign-id 42
```

## Workflow

1. Define campaign objectives and success metrics
2. Build phishing template with tracking pixels
3. Configure SMTP sending profile and landing page
4. Import target list segmented by department
5. Launch campaign with staggered delivery
6. Monitor real-time click and submission rates
7. Generate executive report with risk scores

## Verification

- Verify email delivery rate exceeds 95%
- Confirm tracking pixel fires on open
- Validate credential capture functions
- Check metrics populate in dashboard
- Verify report includes all metrics

## References

- OWASP Testing Guide — https://owasp.org/www-project-web-security-testing-guide/
- MITRE ATT&CK — https://attack.mitre.org/
- NIST SP 800-53 — https://csf.tools/reference/nist-sp-800-53/
