The festive season is a time for celebration, family gatherings, and shopping for that perfect gift. However, it’s also a time when cybercriminals ramp up their activities, targeting individuals and businesses alike with scams, phishing attempts, and other malicious tricks. At Orbits IT, we want to ensure your festivities remain joyful and stress-free by helping you navigate and protect yourself from these increased cyber threats.

Here’s everything you need to know to safeguard yourself, your loved ones, and your business this holiday season.

Who doesn’t love a good festive bargain? But be warned: cybercriminals are experts at creating enticing offers designed to lure you in. Scams often come in the form of emails, text messages, or online ads promoting discounts that seem too good to be true.

Avoid: Clicking on links from unknown senders or ads offering unrealistic discounts. These could lead to phishing websites or malware.

Do instead: Stick to trusted retailers. Always go directly to their official websites rather than clicking on links in emails or SMS messages. Bookmark reputable sites and shop with confidence.

It’s easy to think, “This won’t happen to me,” but cyber threats don’t discriminate. The festive period is a prime time for phishing scams and fraudulent schemes targeting unsuspecting individuals and businesses.

Avoid: Assuming you’re immune to cybercrime. Thinking, “The odds of it happening are too small to worry about,” can leave you exposed.

Do instead: Educate yourself, your family, and your employees on the heightened risks of scams during this period. Understanding what to look for and how to respond is key to staying safe. Simple actions, like identifying suspicious emails or verifying the authenticity of websites, can go a long way.

Your personal and business accounts hold vital information, including banking details and other sensitive data. Without proper precautions, this information could easily fall into the wrong hands.

Avoid: Logging into accounts that store sensitive details (like bank accounts or business platforms) without Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA). This adds an extra layer of protection but is often overlooked.

Do instead: Make enabling MFA a top priority for all accounts holding sensitive information. It’s an easy way to add robust protection, ensuring your Personal Identifiable Information (PII) and business-critical data are safe.

This festive season, take a proactive approach to your cybersecurity. Whether it’s being mindful of too-good-to-be-true offers, educating those around you, or setting up multi-factor authentication, every small step counts.

At Orbits IT, we’re here to provide IT peace of mind. If you’d like to learn more about staying safe online, why not try out our security awareness training? It’s tailored to help you and your team confidently tackle the cyber challenges of the festive period.

Get in touch with us today, and let’s ensure your celebrations remain merry and stress-free. Think of us as your tech-savvy friends, ready to help at a moment’s notice. Together, we’ll keep the festivities secure so you can focus on what really matters.