Phishing, Vishing, & Smishing: Protecting your Organization from Frauds in 2026

Cybercriminals are rapidly advancing their social engineering tactics—leveraging email (phishing), phone calls (vishing), and text messages (smishing) to deceive employees and infiltrate organizational systems. This course provides a practical and highly relevant overview of modern social‑engineering fraud schemes and the human‑centric vulnerabilities that criminals exploit.

Participants will explore real‑world case studies, emerging 2026 threat patterns, and the psychological manipulation techniques used by fraudsters. The course also highlights internal controls, employee‑training strategies, technology safeguards, and response protocols that organizations can implement to reduce exposure to cyber fraud. Designed for non‑technical accounting and audit professionals, the content focuses on actionable protections that strengthen fraud deterrence and enhance organizational cyber‑resilience.

Updated for new frauds in 2026

Who Should Attend
This course is appropriate for CPAs, internal auditors, CIAs, external auditors, managers, CFEs, CFFs, MAFFs. CMAs, CFOs and others interested in cyber security. This course is designed for professionals responsible for safeguarding sensitive information, preventing cyber fraud, and strengthening internal controls.

Topics Covered

• Phishing, vishing, and smishing fraud schemes and methodology
• Red flags, behavioral cues, and psychological manipulation techniques
• Cyber fraud tactics targeting accounting and finance personnel
• Internal controls: access controls, segregation of duties, verification protocols
• Cybersecurity tools that detect or prevent social‑engineering attacks
• AI‑enabled fraud and deepfake threats in 2026
• Incident response strategies and communication requirements

Learning Objectives

• Identify phishing, vishing, and smishing schemes and understand how cybercriminals carry out social‑engineering frauds
• Recognize red flags and behavioral cues associated with social‑engineering attacks
• Explain how fraudsters manipulate communication channels, authentication weaknesses, and employee behavior
• Develop internal controls and cybersecurity procedures to prevent and detect social‑engineering fraud attempts
• Assess organizational vulnerabilities—particularly among accounting and finance teams—and recommend mitigation strategies
• Document and communicate incidents, fraud indicators, and response actions in accordance with professional standards

Level
Basic

Instructional Method
Group: Internet-based

NASBA Field of Study
Accounting (2 hours)

Program Prerequisites
None

Advance Preparation
None