Holiday Tricks

This holiday season, don’t get caught off guard. Statistically, every year in November and December, the number of cyber attacks increase, exponentially. This holiday season, be aware and stay on the lookout for common tricks that criminals like to use.

  • Smishing – Derived from short message service (SMS) phishing, smishing involves criminals sending text messages to your device trying to get you to click a link, perform an action, or provide information.
  • Phishing – The good ole impersonation tactic that comes in via email. Bad actors send messages pretending to be someone you know, trust, or a person in a place of power (such as a boss, government role, or law enforcement). They usually want you to click on a link, download a file or attachment, or reply with information that may be sensitive or urgent.
  • Vishing – Derived from voice phishing, the criminals may call you, pretending again to be someone in a place of power or a bank trying to help you. Often times, these involve security alert scams, pretending that your account has been compromised and they are calling to help you.

This holiday season, keep your eyes open for all the ways bad actors want to catch you off guard, busy, and in a rush to get back to what you were doing. Stay vigilant so you can enjoy all the reasons for the season.