For a large number of businesses, December is a time of reduced staffing, relaxed routines and increased remote work. Unfortunately, as most business and staff members settle into this season, cybercriminals become their most active as they know that this is the time of the year where vigilance is often at its lowest.
Why the Holiday Season Is Prime Time for Cyberattacks
Cybercriminals deliberately target businesses during the festive season as these businesses have fewer employees monitoring their systems, delayed responses from IT teams and an increase in remote access. Phishing campaigns and ransomware attacks spike during this time and unfortunately in the case where credentials are compromised, this normally goes unnoticed until well into January.
Below are a few proactive measures that can help to significantly reduce your businesses risk.
1. Reinforce Phishing Awareness
Phishing is one of the most common and effective cyberattack methods used, especially during the December holiday season. These come in the forms of Holiday-themed emails, fake delivery notifications and “urgent” year-end requests that are designed to trick distracted employees.
Best practices:
- Remind staff member to be cautious of unexpected emails and links
- Verify any payment or access requests via a second channel
- Look out for subtle red flags like unusual sender addresses or urgent language
- Run a company-wide phishing awareness refresher before heading into the festive season
Well-informed employees are one of your strongest security defences.
2. Secure Remote Access and VPNs
Remote work often increases over the holidays, making secure access essential. Weak authentication or outdated remote access tools can create easy entry points for cyber-attackers.
Ensure that:
- MFA (Multi-factor authentication) is enabled on all remote logins
- VPNs and remote access systems are fully patched and monitored
- User access is limited strictly to what is necessary
- Dormant or temporary accounts are disabled
Strong access control ensures flexibility without sacrificing on security.
3. Apply Patches and Updates Before Shutdown
Unpatched systems are a target for cybercriminals. If system vulnerabilities are already known, attackers will exploit them especially when businesses are slow to respond.
Before year-end:
- Apply critical software and operating system updates
- Patch firewalls, routers and network devices
- Update antivirus tools
- Confirm backups are running and tested
4. Monitor Systems with Skeleton Staff
Even if your team is running on reduced capacity, security monitoring must remain a priority. Automated alerts and managed monitoring services can help catch any issues before they escalate.
Key steps include:
- Ensure logs and alerts are actively monitored
- Set-up escalation procedures for any incidents
- Use managed security services if internal resources are limited
Stay Secure, Even When Business Slows Down
Cyber-criminal and their threats don’t take holidays and neither should your cybersecurity strategy. By reinforcing awareness, securing remote access, patching systems and monitoring continuously, businesses can enjoy the festive season without any unwanted surprises.
