Hackers are being given an early holiday present. As we revert back to working from home amidst the Omicron frenzy, it leaves cybercriminals looking for some easy income of their own, ruining the festive cheer.

Knowing that this season will be busier, attackers will focus on businesses thinking that the surge in transactions will provide camouflage. They can do this for two reasons:

• Throughout the holidays, IT and security teams radically reduce their size and hours worked. So, it should come as no surprise that attackers circle these dates on the calendar every year as a workday. Specifically, attackers will deploy ransomware and other types of malware to get access to mission-critical business data. The way they get to it is often via phishing, planting malicious links in the multitude of shopping websites. With people scanning for bargains, often they will click something they shouldn’t.

• Criminals attacking businesses take advantage of employees often using the same device for work and personal life. The moment the unsuspecting person clicks on it, the hackers are in the network.

Knowing the risks associated with Christmas, businesses should try to invest in security measures that can help monitor their systems for suspicious activity and increase security attentiveness for employees. Separating personal and work devices is essential, and implementing a zero-trust architecture that protects employees and devices wherever they are.