Did You Know Crime Stops for No Man? Even Santa Claus

Cyber security matters always, and Christmas is no different from any other part of the year. Because most of us spend time at home with our families, eat copious amounts of chocolate, have a few beers or glasses of wine, and generally just kick back with our feet up while watching TV and eating too many sweets. But for criminals, it’s an opportunity. All those empty offices and unattended computers are gifts just waiting to be unwrapped. While you’re relaxing in front of the TV watching endless repeats of Only Fools & Horses, criminals could be causing chaos for you at work by accessing sensitive business data or defacing websites.

Businesses are vulnerable to cyber-attacks before the Christmas season even begins. As staff becomes distracted by such annual deadlines as Christmas parties, office parties, and so on, they’re more likely to make mistakes. For example, in their haste to get everything done for the holidays, some employees may open an email attachment that should have been checked first. This could lead to a nasty malware problem.

Businesses are vulnerable to cyber-attacks before the Christmas season even begins. As staff becomes distracted by such annual deadlines as Christmas parties, office parties, and so on, they’re more likely to make mistakes. For example, in their haste to get everything done for the holidays, some employees may open an email attachment that should have been checked first. This could lead to a nasty malware problem.

Darktrace, a cybersecurity company based in the United Kingdom, released a study in December 2021 showing that ransomware attacks increase globally during the holiday season.

Darktrace researchers observed a 30 percent increase in the average number of ransomware attacks during the holiday period compared to the monthly average. The researchers also established a 70 percent increase in attempted ransomware attacks in November and December, compared to January and February.

Thus, it is no surprise that governments issue warnings at the end of each year and urge businesses to remain vigilant.

As The Record reported in December 2021, the German Federal Office for Information Security said that cybercriminals know that companies are less responsive during the holiday season and therefore tend to strike at this time.

Don’t cancel Christmas just yet. Cyber security is important, but it’s not a good idea to panic over it while you’re off on vacation. Just being aware that extra vigilance is needed around the holidays is a good start. Remind your team of the dangers of phishing emails, rogue websites, and other security threats. Tell them what to look out for and what they can do to be safer in the future. They might have heard it all before but nudging their memory a little certainly can’t hurt.

While it’s unlikely that hackers will come knocking on your door in the middle of the night to wreak havoc, it is important for businesses to be aware that there are risks associated with letting their guard down at this time of year. If your cyber security is weak and you don’t have a good backup system, then yes, you have something to worry about. But if that’s the case, it’s not just the festive period – you could run into problems any time of year.

Cyber security should be a priority for every business so you can have a merry Christmas and an even happier new year.