How alert fatigue is a common but manageable problem in high-pressure work environments.
Alert fatigue compromises otherwise effective cybersecurity strategies. How can business owners and other concerned parties address this issue and increase engagement across their organisations?
Alert fatigue occurs when notifications overwhelm people, often after they realise many are false alarms. Individuals become gradually desensitised, causing them to delay or avoid necessary actions. Although this is a cybersecurity-focused overview, the problem affects workers in other busy settings, including those in the health care and transportation industries.
Many employees silence personal phones to stay focused, but turning off work-related notifications due to overwhelm causes far-reaching ramifications.
Organisations miss genuine threats - Alert fatigue can make cybersecurity professionals unaware of issues needing their immediate attention. A 2025 managed service provider survey revealed 56% feel exhausted by incoming messages daily or weekly. Additionally, recipients deemed 20% of the notifications meaningless, with the false-alarm rate as high as 70% in some organisations.
If professionals primarily get information that does not require prompt attention or distracts them from important tasks, they will be more likely to ignore it. Unfortunately, that habit could give intruders easier network access.
Cybersecurity professionals experience mental health declines - Cybersecurity experts work in a high-pressure and rapidly evolving industry. The results of a 2023 study identified alert fatigue as a contributor to poor mental health. More than half the participants said the issue increased their anxiety or depression.
However, they do not believe executives take the problem seriously. Over three-quarters think IT leadership would last less than a day if asked to field the number of alerts typically received. Additionally, the responses given to 82% were that stress and burnout are normal.
Employees may not follow cybersecurity best practices - Onboarding best practices suggest covering cybersecurity protocols within new employees’ first weeks, whether they work on-site or remotely, which reduces risks. However, the effects become even more impactful if workers recognise tight security as a cultural norm.
Unfortunately, broader internet-related developments pose new challenges. During a SteelCon cybersecurity conference presentation in July 2024, Arron “Finux” Finnon noted how cookie-acceptance popups can influence how people respond to other alerts. Their conditioning to accept those may make them similarly complacent when receiving more urgent on-screen messages. Many have “remind me later” options that busy employees may click for as long as possible.
Businesses face increased operational disruptions - Cybersecurity platforms can detect incoming threats, categorise them by risk and suggest remediation steps. Virtually all these tools send authorized users notifications. Those suffering from alert fatigue may initially dismiss the options and plan to review the details during quieter moments, but passing time increases cybercriminals’ advantage.
Online security breaches are incredibly disruptive, especially for smaller enterprises. According to one study, financial pressures from successful cyberattacks cause 60% of midsize companies to close forever within six months. Besides the expenses to address known vulnerabilities, many struggle with reputation damage and customer mistrust. Those ramifications are particularly true if the incidents result in sensitive data loss.
Assessing incoming notifications is an integral part of cybersecurity practitioners’ jobs, but alert fatigue is not an inevitability if decision-makers take proactive steps.
1. Investing in Platforms That Provide Customised Notifications
Many cybersecurity monitoring products allow administrators to adjust the types of alerts users get, triage potential issues and provide detailed reports. Together, such features reduce the likelihood of alert fatigue because they offer the most relevant contextual information, which minimizes false alarms or unnecessary content.
2. Providing Cybersecurity Professionals With Adequate Resources
Workload management is another crucial element for alert fatigue prevention. Professionals with appropriate levels of daily duties are less likely to feel overwhelmed, rushed or under constant pressure. Those characteristics can elevate stress, especially if large portions of the workday involve handling incoming notifications that do not require immediate action.
Because research indicates many cybersecurity professionals receive inadequate responses after bringing mental health concerns to management’s attention, corporate culture changes will also help. Employees who feel well-resourced, heard and respected at work can thrive, even when career-related pressure increases.
3. Budgeting for Outsourced Assistance to Lighten Workloads
Workforce shortages can exacerbate alert fatigue, but these challenges are persistent and not easy to solve quickly. Advertising roles, reviewing applications and interviewing candidates can take months, and the time frames lengthen with larger candidate pools. However, outsourcing can be a more efficient option to close labour gaps.
That worked well for the chief information officer of a Florida local government body, who determined hiring an external service provider was the best option. Previously, the arrangement involved two or three internal employees watching incoming content on ten consoles that generated multiple logs each second. The leader collaborated with the outside entity to customise the threat protection and explain what constituted expected network activity.
Alert fatigue is a common but manageable problem in high-pressure work environments. Understanding the issue and proactively minimising it strengthens cybersecurity outcomes and team productivity.
Eleanor Hecks is a SMB writer who is passionate about helping businesses keep themselves and their customers safe online. Her work can be found as Editor-in-Chief of business magazine Designerly, as well as on a range of publications such as Fast Company and HubSpot.
Eleanor Hecks is a SMB writer who is passionate about helping businesses keep themselves and their customers safe online. Her work can be found as Editor-in-Chief of business magazine Designerly, as well as on a range of publications such as Fast Company and HubSpot.
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