As the year’s biggest shopping events, Black Friday and Cyber Monday always bring a surge of spending as well as cyberattacks to capitalize on the increased activity and chaos. Cybercriminals know that IT teams are busy, systems are strained, and staff may be distracted, making these peak periods perfect hunting grounds to attack businesses and scam customers.
That’s why cybersecurity awareness is essential to keep both your business and your customers safe during this high-traffic season. Let’s take a look at the cyber risks you may face this Black Friday and Cyber Monday and how you can protect your business and customers.
What are the most common cybersecurity risks during the holiday season?
The holiday season attracts cybercriminals because they know that shoppers are paying money over the internet more during the Black Friday weekend than any other time of the year. Here’s what to expect:
Threats to customers
Phishing scams, malware attacks, and ransomware are especially common, as cybercriminals use fake emails, websites, and limited-time offers to trick employees or customers into clicking malicious links or giving up private data.
Cybercriminals might even impersonate your business, sending fake order confirmations or promotions to take advantage of your customers’ trust in your brand and steal their money and data.
Threats to businesses
Another growing threat is distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks, which can overwhelm your website with fake traffic, slowing or even crashing your online store at the peak of sales. These outages not only hurt your revenue but also damage your reputation and customer trust.
Data breaches are also a major risk for businesses this spending season. Attackers know that small and mid-sized businesses often store sensitive customer data, such as credit card details and addresses, but usually lack enterprise-level security measures. They are aiming to steal your company data as well as your customers’ private data to use in future attacks or sell on the dark web.
How to protect your business from Black Friday & Cyber Monday cyberthreats
Secure your operations and your revenue by implementing these key protective measures.
Run a cybersecurity assessment
To keep your business safe, start by ensuring your IT infrastructure can handle increased online activity and survive an attack. Slow systems or outdated hardware can create vulnerabilities that attackers exploit. Conduct a preholiday IT audit or request your managed IT services provider (MSP) to perform one to identify issues such as outdated software, weak passwords, and network vulnerabilities.
Implement data backups
Your client and customer data are vital to your operations, not to mention your holiday season profits. Unfortunately, ransomware attacks often spike during the holidays, which lock you out of critical files until a ransom is paid. With secure, automated data backups, you can quickly recover data without paying a dime.
Make a plan and practice it
Finally, work with your IT department or MSP to make sure your cyber incident response plan is up to date. Every second counts in a cyber incident, and having a clear plan in place means your team knows exactly what to do if something goes wrong to minimize downtime. Just don’t forget to practice your response plan with simulated attacks.
How to protect your customers this holiday season
Protecting customer data not only keeps your business compliant but also builds loyalty and confidence. Consumers are looking to spend a lot of money this holiday season, but they won’t do it at businesses they don’t trust; the stakes are too high. Here’s how you can protect your customers and preserve their trust in you:
Encrypt traffic
Use SSL encryption on your website to ensure customer data such as payment and personal information is transmitted securely. A visible “HTTPS” in your site’s URL reassures visitors that they’re shopping safely.
Communicate with customers
Be transparent about your data protection practices. Display trust badges, publish a clear privacy policy, and remind customers how their information is used and secured. You can even send out a preholiday security reminder via email or social media to help educate them about common scams.
Train staff
Conduct quick refresher cybersecurity awareness training sessions to help employees recognize suspicious behavior such as fake customer service calls, refund scams, or fraudulent emails pretending to be from vendors. This way your workforce can do their part to protect your business.
Need professional guidance on how to keep your business and customers safe from cyberattacks and scams this holiday season? Contact outsourceITfor a free cybersecurity assessment that will show you exactly what needs to be done.
