Estimated read time: 1-2 minutes
SALT LAKE CITY — As Utahns prepare for the holidays, cybersecurity experts warn criminals are now in their busy season.
"It started in October," said Eric O'Neill, a former FBI special agent and author of "Spies, Lies and Cybercrime."
"At the end of October, in Halloween, the run-up to Halloween. And it continues all the way through New Year's," he said.
The reason is simply: that we're busy. We shop more. We travel more. We donate more. All things that suck up the time where, the rest of the year, we might think to ourselves, "Huh — that seems fishy."
Nationally, nearly 1 in 3 people surveyed by cybersecurity firm Norton said they've been targeted by holiday scams.
"This is when cybercriminals swarm the internet in order to steal as much money as they can," said O'Neill. "This is their most important quarter of the year."
Increasingly, scammers are using AI deepfakes to fool us. Which means your best defense is to be a cynic: Assume the worst by assuming it's fake.
That text message saying a package couldn't be delivered? Fake!
That charity raising money on Facebook? Fake!
That online store selling an item that everywhere else is a little more expensive? Fake!
"Every time you're logging on, every time you're on social media, every time you're going through your email inbox, you are potentially being targeted by an attacker," warned O'Neill.
He says it's also important to talk openly about holiday scams with friends and family.
"Cyber criminals have more access to us than they ever have in the past. We are more online, especially after the pandemic."
According to the U.S. Department of Treasury, Americans lost over $12.5 billion dollars to cybercrime in 2023. That's a 22% jump from the year before.
