Why you're most likely to get hacked today

It’s the most wonderful time of the year… for you, and for the hackers targeting you.

Sleigh bells ring, are you listening? In the lane, snow is glistening. It’s the most wonderful time of the year, but it’s also a prime time for hackers to try and take advantage of you, stealing your data and causing issues that could last long into the new year.

Businesses are at a massive risk of being hacked around this time of year. Criminals target businesses this time of year because they’re often understaffed and reliant on lower levels of defense, thanks to the Christmas holidays, which mean people take time off.

This is an ideal situation for cybercriminals to thrive in because it means their activities take longer to discover, giving them more time to exploit any gaps and vulnerabilities they find. If a hack attack happens on December 25th, it could be early January before any issue or hack attack is recognized within an organization.

Christmas fear?

That helps explain why businesses are particularly vulnerable at this time of year. But it’s not just businesses that need to keep a watchful eye out for any potential issues around the festive period. A range of factors – from logistics to psychology and behavioral issues – mean you’re more vulnerable at this time of year than any other.

The constant stream of emails from brands trying to encourage you to shop online are prime pickings for cybercriminals looking to hoodwink you. It’s this time of year that phishing attacks potentially have their greatest chance of success because too-good-to-be-true bargains and discounts don’t stand out as unusual.

If a legitimate retailer is offering you 50% off their products, what’s to say that the 60% discount offered by a phishing email is unusual?

It's also prime time for users getting their hands on new tech, the unfamiliarity with which can cause potential risks – and allow cybercriminals to take advantage.

Whether an overeager child nagging you to set up their latest console means you forget or overlook adding multi-factor authentication (MFA), leaving you vulnerable in the weeks and months to come, or not bothering to change default passwords so you can get set up quicker, both cause issues.

A range of factors – from logistics to psychology and behavioral issues – mean you’re more vulnerable at this time of year than any other.

Away from home

The harsh reality is that your defenses may already have been breached before Christmas Day. With the festive period comes a lot of travel, and people move around the country – and the world – in ways they ordinarily may not. As a result, they may rely on public WiFi and other systems to stay connected.

Man-in-the-middle attacks that eavesdrop on public WiFi connections may be more commonplace, causing issues that can come back to bite individuals in the days and weeks after they’re initially attacked – such as by giving over banking or social media passwords and login details inadvertently.

Being aware of these risks can go a long way toward preventing them at this time of year. Simply knowing that this is a dangerous season and that hackers are seeking out cracks in your personal and professional systems can help avoid these issues.

The toolkit for getting through the holiday season is simple, but worth remembering: be cautious with emails, especially those with urgent language or links offering deals too good to be true.

Be wary of public WiFi and don’t use it unless you can trust it – and even then, it may be worth accessing it through a VPN. Make sure you use all software reliably, update regularly, and take the time to put in MFA to avoid falling victim later on.