Are You Prepared for the Holiday Cyber-risk Surge?

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With the winter holiday season right around the corner, cybercriminals will be chomping at the bit to take advantage of the increase in employee distractions at this time of the year. From phishing scams disguised as holiday promotions to unwanted gifts of ransomware attacks, businesses face higher risks than ever this holiday season. Organizations need to bolster their defenses and act proactively to mitigate risk before unwanted cyberthreats arrive at their doorstep.

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Is increased holiday cyber-risk fact or fiction?

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Companies experiencing a surge in cyberattacks on weekends, nights and holidays isn’t a myth — it’s an established fact, and smart companies know it is critical to be prepared. Cybercriminals never take a day off. Cyberattacks balloon by an estimated 40% during the holidays as cybercriminals take advantage of skeleton staffing and harried, multitasking employees who may be more prone to mistakes.

As in every season, the biggest cyber-risk factor is employees. With phishing especially prevalent during the holiday season, a deluge of holiday phishing, from email phishing to malvertising, brings increased risk in its wake. If it continues in its usual pattern, phishing will rise steadily, hitting a peak increase of 50% over the yearly average in December.

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Unwrapping the top cyber frameworks

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Mitigating cyber-risk is a challenge companies face all year round. Setting yourself up for defensive success by utilizing a cybersecurity framework is a smart move. Cybersecurity frameworks provide a structured approach to identifying, managing and mitigating risks, ensuring that an organization can effectively protect its assets and respond to threats. A cybersecurity framework is also an underrated incident response asset that reduces response times, minimizes damage and helps organizations recover faster. In the Kaseya Cybersecurity Survey Report 2024, we revealed that NIST (40%) and Zero Trust (36%) are currently the most widely adopted cybersecurity frameworks among respondents.

Which of the following cybersecurity frameworks do you currently utilize?

Framework	% of responses
NIST	40%
Zero Trust	36%
ISO 27001	27%
MITRE ATT&CK	20%
CIS	20%
CMMC	14%
COBIT	13%
ASD Essential 8	8%
NCSC CAF	8%

Source: Kaseya

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Preserve your silent nights by building cyber resilience

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Choosing the right security solutions is critical for building a resilient defense that can stand up to the increased pressure of holiday cyberattacks, so you can stay nestled snug in your bed. It comes as no surprise that the vast majority of respondents to our survey have deployed an antivirus solution. Perennial problems with phishing have resulted in more than three-quarters of respondents ramping up email security. Go a step further and give yourself the gift of time by opting for solutions that feature artificial intelligence (AI) and automation.

Which of the following security solutions has your organization implemented?

Solution	2024
Antivirus software	87%
Email/spam protection	79%
File backup	70%
Security awareness training	69%
Endpoint detection and response (EDR)	65%
Managed firewall	65%
Automated software patching	57%
Business continuity and disaster recovery (BCDR)	48%
Identity and access management	47%
Incident response	44%
Penetration testing	40%
Security operations center	35%

Source: Kaseya

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Don’t end up on the naughty list by neglecting incident response planning

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No one wants to get an emergency call saying their company has been hit by a cyberattack during a holiday celebration with their friends and family. Unfortunately, that’s a realistic scenario. Cybercriminals often choose to optimize their attacks by striking on nights, weekends and holidays. For example, over three-quarters (76%) of ransomware attacks occur outside of working hours. Fortunately, the winning combination of automated, AI-enabled security solutions and smart incident response planning helps reduce risk and ensure that you’re ready for trouble.

A formal incident response plan is essential for ensuring that a company can quickly and smoothly respond to trouble no matter when it crops up. Many businesses have been proactive about incident response planning, with 59% of our survey respondents already having a formal incident response plan in place. However, there is room for improvement. Only 37% of respondents report that they confirm the efficacy of their plan with periodic drills, down from 46% in 2023. Testing your plan regularly ensures that everyone knows their role and can respond quickly to minimize damage and costs.  

Which of the following best describes your organization when it comes to having a cybersecurity incident response plan?

Response	2024	2023
We have a formal IR plan in place, and we perform periodic drills and tabletop exercises to test it	37%	46%
We have some security solutions to protect us, but we do not have a formal IR plan in place	30%	23%
We have a formal IR plan in place, but we haven’t tested it	22%	22%
We believe our IT service provider has a plan in place for us	5%	5%
Don’t know	6%	3%

Source: Kaseya

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Minimizing downtime minimizes your time away from the fun

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If you do have to respond to a call on a holiday, you’ll want to get your company back on its feet quickly so you can get back to having a good time. Many companies have discovered that investments in technologies that speed up incident response, like managed detection and response (MDR) and cloud backup, can really pay off. Just over half (56%) of our survey respondents who said their organization has experienced a cybersecurity incident in the last 12 months had downtime of one day or less, including just over one-quarter of respondents who had no downtime at all.

If you’ve experienced a cybersecurity incident, what was your total downtime?

Total downtime	2024
More than 3 days	9%
2 to 3 days	8%
1 day	7%
Less than 1 day	22%
None – we didn’t have any downtime	27%
We have not experienced a cybersecurity incident	20%
Don’t know/declined	6%
We did not recover	1%

Source: Kaseya

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Five tips to help you prepare for holiday cyberattacks

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1. Ensure all employees are aware of the part they play in maintaining security and preventing a data breach.
2. Run phishing simulations, including fake emails from popular brands like Amazon, to ensure that everyone is on their toes during this period of extreme phishing risk.
3. Confirm that you’ve updated all your software with the most recent patches and updates.
4. Maximize your security and save time by utilizing your solutions’ automation and AI capabilities.
5. Strengthen your security culture by empowering employees to report their mistakes without fearing job loss.

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Give yourself the gift of more time with solutions that make the most of automation & AI

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You can reduce cyber risk all year round and trim your to-do list with the AI-enabled features and automations in our affordable security solutions.

BullPhish ID – This effective, automated security awareness training and phishing simulation solution provides critical training that improves compliance, prevents employee mistakes and reduces a company’s risk of being hit by a cyberattack.     

Dark Web ID – Our award-winning dark web monitoring solution is the channel leader for good reason. It provides the greatest amount of protection around with 24/7/365 human- and machine-powered monitoring of business and personal credentials, including domains, IP addresses and email addresses.    

Graphus – This automated anti-phishing solution uses AI and a patented algorithm to catch and quarantine dangerous messages. It learns from every organization’s unique communication patterns to continuously tailor protection without human intervention. Best of all, it deploys in minutes to defend businesses from phishing and email-based cyberattacks, including zero-day, AI-enhanced and novel threats.  

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Book a demo of BullPhish ID, Dark Web ID and Graphus. BOOK IT>>

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