As we close out 2025 and look ahead to 2026, businesses face a familiar challenge: increased cybersecurity risk during year-end operations. Between holiday distractions, year-end financial processes, and evolving compliance requirements, this time of year creates prime opportunities for cybercriminals.
At Integrated Technology Systems, we help organizations
- identify vulnerabilities
- strengthen defenses
- prepare for the modern threat landscape.
This end-of-year cybersecurity guide highlights the most common risks businesses face during the holiday season and outlines practical steps to protect your systems, data, and operations going into the new year.
2025 Holiday Cyber Threats to Watch For
The holiday season consistently brings a surge in cyberattacks, as threat actors take advantage of reduced staffing, increased online activity, and time-sensitive business processes. In 2025, these risks are compounded by more sophisticated tactics, including AI-generated scams and advanced social engineering.
Holiday Phishing Scams
Phishing attacks spike during the holidays, with emails and messages disguised as shipping notifications, invoices, charitable requests, or urgent executive communications. AI-generated content has made these messages more realistic than ever, making it harder for employees to identify fraudulent activity.
Best practices:
- Treat any email requesting financial action or credential changes with caution
- Avoid clicking links or opening attachments from unknown or unexpected senders
- Verify executive or vendor requests using trusted contact methods rather than replying directly
Employee awareness remains one of the strongest defenses against phishing-related breaches.
Secure Online Shopping and Payment Fraud
Online purchasing increases significantly during the holiday season, creating more opportunities for payment fraud and credential theft. Gift card scams are especially prevalent, with losses rising sharply year over year as attackers target both businesses and individuals.
Security recommendations:
- Use reputable websites with secure checkout options
- Favor credit cards over debit cards for online purchases
- Monitor bank and credit card statements frequently for unauthorized charges
Early detection allows for faster response and minimizes financial impact.
Year-End Password and Session Security
Year-end is an ideal time to review and strengthen access controls, especially for systems that handle sensitive or financial data.
- Update passwords for critical systems, including payroll, accounting, and customer databases
- Use strong, unique passwords that combine letters, numbers, and symbols
- Avoid password reuse across platforms
For organizations using Microsoft 365, enforcing session timeouts on workstations and mobile devices adds an additional layer of protection—particularly when devices may be left unattended during holiday travel. Shorter timeout intervals should be applied to systems with higher data sensitivity.
Key Compliance and Regulatory Updates Heading Into 2026
Cybersecurity and data privacy regulations continue to evolve, with new enforcement deadlines approaching in 2026. Businesses should ensure they are aligned with current and upcoming requirements.
PCI DSS 4.0.1
Enforcement of PCI DSS 4.0.1 accelerated in Q4 2025 following the March 31 compliance deadline. The updated standard strengthens authentication requirements and expands continuous monitoring obligations for payment processing systems. Organizations should validate that required technical controls are properly implemented and documented.
Health Information Privacy Reform Act (HIPRA)
HIPRA introduces stricter standards for protecting patient data, along with increased penalties for non-compliance. Organizations that handle protected health information should:
- Review and audit privacy policies and access controls
- Ensure only authorized personnel can access patient records
- Verify encryption is in place for data at rest and in transit
Expanding State-Level Data Privacy Laws
State privacy regulations are growing more complex, with new requirements related to breach notifications, fraud prevention, and consumer data protection. Several states, including Maryland and New Jersey, enacted gift card fraud prevention laws in 2025, with compliance deadlines already in effect. Businesses operating across multiple states should evaluate how overlapping regulations impact their operations.
Cloud Security Considerations for a Distributed Workforce
Remote work, cloud applications, and mobile access are now standard for many organizations. Without proper configuration, year-end transitions can leave security gaps that attackers exploit.
Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)
Passwords alone are no longer enough. Enable multi-factor authentication across all cloud platforms—especially those containing financial data, customer records, or operational systems. MFA significantly reduces the risk of account compromise by requiring additional verification beyond passwords.
Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery
Backups are critical, but they must be tested regularly. Before year-end:
- Verify that backups are complete and secure
- Test restoration procedures to ensure systems can be recovered quickly
- Measure recovery time objectives to identify potential gaps
Effective disaster recovery planning ensures your business can resume operations with minimal disruption.
Access Controls and Policy Management
Role-based access controls limit exposure by ensuring employees only have access to the systems and data required for their job functions. This is especially important for remote workers accessing cloud resources from personal or unmanaged devices.
End-of-Year IT Maintenance Priorities
The transition to a new year is the perfect time to address deferred maintenance and validate security controls.
Software Updates and Patch Management
Unpatched systems remain one of the most common attack vectors. Apply operating system and application updates promptly to close known vulnerabilities before attackers can exploit them.
Security Assessments and Vulnerability Testing
Not all vulnerabilities carry the same risk. Conducting security assessments helps prioritize remediation efforts, focusing resources on systems that store sensitive or regulated data. Addressing high-risk vulnerabilities first provides the greatest reduction in overall exposure.
Strengthen Your Cybersecurity with a Managed IT Partner
The cybersecurity challenges businesses face at year-end require expertise, proactive monitoring, and rapid response—capabilities that many internal teams struggle to maintain alone. A managed service provider like Integrated Technology Systems delivers the tools, experience, and ongoing oversight needed to protect your organization during high-risk periods and throughout the year.
As 2026 approaches, now is the time to assess your security posture, close critical gaps, and ensure your IT environment is ready for what’s ahead.
Don’t head into 2026 with unknown risks. Schedule a cybersecurity review with Integrated Technology Systems and ensure your systems, data, and users are protected.
Integrated Technology Systems
6 East 45th Street, Suite 400
New York, NY 10017
212-750-5420
https://www.itsnyc.com
