Vishing simulation
AI vishing simulation: test how your people handle a real scam call
PhishGrid's AI voice agent calls employees, holds a live conversation and records whether they disclose an OTP, a password or customer details, refuse, or report the call. Built for banks, finance teams and anyone whose staff are called by people pretending to be someone they trust.
What is vishing simulation?
Vishing simulation is a controlled voice-phishing test. Employees get a realistic phone call that tries to get them to disclose information or take an action, and the outcome is recorded so the right people get trained.
Email and SMS phishing tests leave out the channel scammers use when they need to talk someone past their own doubts. A voice call adds tone, urgency and the ability to answer objections. With AI-generated audio, it can also sound like someone the employee knows. Read vishing vs phishing vs smishing for how the three channels differ.
How an AI vishing call works
Pick the people and the pretext
Choose a group (finance, branch staff, IT helpdesk, executives' assistants) and a scenario that matches how attackers reach them.
The AI agent places the call
A voice agent calls each person and holds a live conversation. It answers questions, pushes back and adds urgency the way a real caller would, instead of playing a recording.
The outcome is recorded
For every call you see whether the employee disclosed something (an OTP, a password, account details), refused, or reported the call.
Training follows the result
People who disclosed get short, targeted training on the red flags they missed. Results feed each person's risk profile, so the next test adapts.
Vishing simulation for banks and finance teams
Four scenarios that mirror the calls bank and finance staff actually receive. Each one tests a specific rule: never share an OTP, call back on a known number, verify before resetting anything.
Branch and contact-centre staff
“This is your bank's fraud team”
The caller claims a suspicious transaction and asks the employee to read back an OTP or confirm a customer's details to “block” it. This is the most common pattern in bank impersonation fraud, and staff are targeted with it too.
Finance, treasury and payments teams
Urgent payment from a senior voice
A caller posing as the CFO or a director asks for a same-day transfer or a change of beneficiary details, sometimes with AI-generated audio. The test is whether the employee follows the call-back rule.
All staff, especially new joiners
IT helpdesk password reset
“IT” calls about a mailbox problem and walks the person through a login or MFA prompt. It checks whether people verify the caller before acting.
Compliance and operations
Regulator or auditor follow-up
A caller says they are from a regulator or an audit firm and needs a document or system access before a deadline. Authority plus a deadline is the lever.
Deepfake CEO fraud training for finance teams
Voice-clone fraud works because a familiar voice skips the doubt a written request would raise. The defence is a rule that does not depend on recognising the voice: payment and beneficiary changes are confirmed by calling back on a number from the directory, never the one that called. A simulation with AI-generated audio is the only way to see whether that rule holds when the voice sounds right.
- Agree the call-back rule and the escalation contact before the campaign, so people know what “right” looks like.
- Run the scenario on the people who can move money: payments, treasury, executive assistants.
- Brief legal and HR on the voices and scenarios used; do not imitate real individuals without their consent.
- Debrief everyone afterwards, including those who passed. The point is the rule, not catching people out.
What each call tells you
| Outcome | What it means |
|---|---|
| Disclosed | Gave the caller something they should not have: an OTP, password, customer or account detail. |
| Refused | Declined the request but did not tell anyone. |
| Verified | Ended the call and checked through an official number or channel. |
| Reported | Reported the call to security or the fraud team, the behaviour you want most. |
Voice results sit next to email, SMS and QR-code results in the same risk profile, so you see each person across every channel. See the phishing simulation platform and attack templates.
Vishing simulation: FAQs
What is a vishing simulation?
A vishing simulation is a controlled voice-phishing test: employees receive a realistic phone call that tries to get them to disclose information or act, and the result is recorded so they can be trained. It is the voice equivalent of an email phishing simulation.
How does AI vishing simulation differ from recorded calls?
A recorded message plays the same script to everyone and cannot respond. PhishGrid's AI voice agent holds a live conversation, answers questions and adds pressure the way a real caller would, so the test reflects what actually happens on a scam call.
Why do banks run vishing simulations?
Bank staff are called by fraudsters posing as colleagues, the bank's own fraud team, IT or regulators, and a single disclosed OTP or customer detail can enable account takeover. Vishing simulation shows which teams follow call-back and verification rules under pressure, and gives evidence of awareness testing for audits.
Can a vishing simulation include deepfake or cloned voices?
Voice calls in PhishGrid can include AI-generated audio, so you can test whether finance teams still follow the call-back rule when a request sounds like a senior person. Agree the scenario and the voices used with your legal and HR teams before the campaign.
What do we get from a vishing campaign?
For each call: whether the person disclosed, refused, verified or reported, alongside their email and SMS results. Results feed each person's risk profile and trigger targeted training for the people who disclosed.
Which PhishGrid plan includes automated vishing?
Automated vishing is part of the Enterprise plan. The free plan covers email phishing simulation; see the pricing page for what each plan includes.