Serta Simmons Bedding Fortifies Email Defense and Security Awareness with Abnormal AI

Serta Simmons Bedding remains one of the largest and most well-regarded bedding manufacturers in America, built on brands consumers have trusted for generations. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, the manufacturer runs a lean operations team supporting a large, distributed workforce and a steady flow of vendor partners. Its brand portfolio is one of the company’s most valuable assets.

The Serta Simmons Bedding Email Security Challenge

Serta Simmons Bedding wasn’t a primary target for sophisticated attackers, but it remained an attractive target for opportunistic campaigns. According to Christopher Scott, Director of Information Security Operations at Serta Simmons Bedding, a large user base and constant vendor correspondence, on top of an unsophisticated network, left the door open to opportunistic phishing and business email compromise (BEC). The team knew that human error, rather than advanced threats, was likely its greatest security weakness, yet its phishing simulations drew only about 10% participation, leaving most employees untested. Account takeover alerts from other tools produced noise more often than signal, and graymail piled into inboxes faster than anyone could clear it. That’s when Serta Simmons Bedding turned to Abnormal AI.

Customer Key Challenges:

• Cookie-cutter phishing drills drew only 10% employee participation.
• Unsophisticated network and heavy vendor mail invited opportunistic attacks.
• Graymail and noisy alerts buried IT and employees in manual work.

Abnormal Solution:

• AI Phishing Coach delivers personalized simulations from real attacks Abnormal has caught, with just-in-time coaching for every employee.
• Inbound Email Security and Account Takeover Protection stop advanced attacks and automatically lock out compromised accounts.
• Email Productivity and AI Security Mailbox clear graymail and triage user-reported email automatically.

“With Email Productivity, we’re able to quantify the value of the solution and demonstrate its impact to our executive team. Rather than spending time evaluating potentially suspicious messages, employees can focus on higher-value work.” — Christopher Scott, Director of Information Security Operations

The Abnormal AI Solution

Serta Simmons Bedding runs Abnormal’s behavioral AI natively on Microsoft 365, alongside Microsoft Defender, with no separate secure email gateway (SEG) to manage. The platform baselines normal sender, recipient, and sign-in behavior across the organization, then flags anomalies in real time. Inbound Email Security and Account Takeover Protection cover advanced attacks and identity risk. Email Productivity and AI Security Mailbox manage the inbox layer, clearing graymail and triaging user-reported messages. AI Phishing Coach closes the loop by turning real attacks the platform has caught into personalized, just-in-time training for every employee.

Why Serta Simmons Bedding Chose Abnormal AI

Serta Simmons Bedding chose Abnormal for the strength of its email security, continued innovation, and breadth as a unified platform. Today, Inbound Email Security quietly stops thousands of advanced attacks a month, more than a commodity filter would ever catch, according to Chris. The accuracy of Account Takeover Protection means Chris trusts every alert and investigates it. Meanwhile, Email Productivity continues to win universal appreciation, giving hours back to users who used to triage graymail manually. Additionally, AI Security Mailbox gives instant feedback on reported email, while AI Phishing Coach has replaced canned security awareness drills with real-attack simulations. In fact, AI Phishing Coach has lifted user participation rates in training from 10% to 40%, above industry benchmarks, while built-in LMS content covers training Chris once bought elsewhere.

From Awareness to Vigilance

Chris is already planning the next phase of the AI Phishing Coach program: a gamified rewards system that recognizes employees who consistently spot and report simulated phishing, and an upcoming feature that increases the difficulty of simulations for the people who keep catching them. It’s a small shift with an outsized effect. The employees who once represented the biggest point of exposure are becoming the most reliable line of defense, and the program is built to keep raising the bar for them as fast as they clear it.

“AI Phishing Coach has delivered value beyond phishing awareness alone. Its integration with our HR systems and built-in security training capabilities help support our compliance requirements and ensure employees receive the education they need to stay vigilant against evolving threats.” — Christopher Scott, Director of Information Security Operations

Abnormal Products in Use:

• Inbound Email Security
• Account Takeover Protection
• AI Security Mailbox
• Email Productivity
• AI Phishing Coach