Train firm’s ‘worker bonus’ email is actually cybersecurity test

West Midlands Trains workers discover email promising one-off payment is phishing simulation test'

A rail union has hit out at a cynical and shocking stunt" after a train company emailed staff to promise a bonus to workers who had run trains during the pandemic - only to reveal it was in fact a test of their cybersecurity awareness.

West Midlands Trains emailed about 2,500 employees with a message saying its managing director, Julian Edwards, wanted to thank them for their hard work over the past year under Covid-19. The email said they would get a one-off payment as a thank you after huge strain was placed upon a large number of our workforce".