November 03, 2025
Last December, an accounts payable clerk at a midsize company received an urgent text appearing to be from her "CEO": Purchase $3,000 worth of Apple gift cards for clients, scratch off the codes, and email them immediately. Though it felt suspicious, the message bore the boss's name and it was the chaotic holiday season. By the time she verified, the scammer had already drained the funds, and the business suffered the financial loss.
That type of scam is painful, but some cybercrimes devastate businesses entirely. In the same month, Orion S.A., a chemical manufacturer based in Luxembourg, was targeted with a far more damaging fraud. An employee received what looked like routine emails requesting wire transfers—likely from trusted colleagues or partners. These messages appeared credible, urgent, and consistent with usual business operations. Acting without hesitation, the employee approved multiple transfers.
The impact? Sixty million dollars vanished, wired directly to cybercriminals—over half of the company's annual profit wiped out through fraudulent transactions.
If you believe your small business is too insignificant to attract hackers, think again. In 2023 alone, gift-card scams caused businesses to lose more than $217 million, and in 2024, business email compromise attacks made up 73% of cyber incidents. The holiday season presents an ideal opportunity for criminals because employees are distracted, stressed, and handling increased transaction volumes.
5 Critical Holiday Scams Your Employees Must Recognize to Prevent Costly Losses
1. "Urgent Boss Gift Card Request" (The $3,000 Scam Text)
- Scheme: Fraudsters impersonate executives, pressuring staff into purchasing gift cards for "clients" or "employee rewards." In Q1 2024, 37.9% of business email compromise incidents involved gift card fraud.
- How to Defend: Implement strict company rules requiring two levels of approval before buying gift cards. Train employees that executives will never ask for gift cards via text message.
2. Invoice & Payment Details Manipulation (The High-Stakes Money Grab)
- Scheme: Scammers send fake "updated banking info" or hijack vendor email threads when bills are due. For example, in June 2024, the Town of Arlington, MA, lost nearly $500,000 to this scam.
- How to Defend: Always verify banking changes by calling a known phone number—not the one in the email. Establish a "phone call confirmation rule" for all financial changes exceeding $5,000.
3. Fake Shipping and Delivery Alerts
- Scheme: Phishing emails or texts impersonate UPS, FedEx, or USPS with links prompting users to "reschedule delivery."
- How to Defend: Teach employees to navigate carrier websites by typing URLs directly into browsers. Bookmark official tracking pages to avoid dangerous links.
4. Harmful "Holiday Party" Email Attachments
- Scheme: Emails containing attachments like "Holiday_Schedule.pdf" or "Party_List.xls" that deploy malware when opened.
- How to Defend: Disable macros, scan all attachments carefully, and cultivate a workplace culture insisting on verification of unexpected files.
5. Fraudulent Holiday Fundraising Campaigns
- Scheme: Phishing websites imitate charities or fake "company match" drives to steal funds or sensitive data.
- How to Defend: Provide an approved list of charities and require all donations to go through authorized company channels.
Why Cybercriminals Succeed & The Steps to Block Them
The very tools modernization brought—email, online banking, digital payments—are exploited by attackers. These aren't your typical scam emails; they combine social engineering with targeted research to deceive your company.
Firms that conduct regular phishing training cut risks by 60%, yet most small businesses neglect employee cybersecurity education. Multifactor authentication stops 99% of unauthorized account access, but many companies still rely on easily compromised passwords.
Your Ultimate Holiday Cybersecurity Checklist
Prepare now before the holiday rush:
- Two-Person Validation: Require verbal confirmation through a separate channel for any transactions over your established threshold.
- Strict Gift Card Policy: Document that gift cards are not to be requested or purchased via email or text.
- Vendor Banking Confirmation: Verify all payment or banking information changes by calling numbers already on file.
- Enable Multifactor Authentication: Activate MFA on all email, financial, and cloud service accounts.
- Raise Holiday Awareness: Educate your team on these five scams using real-life examples.
The True Price: Beyond Financial Damage
Though Orion's $60 million hit made headlines, smaller businesses face hidden costs that often strike harder:
- Operations stall during the busiest season
- Productivity drops as employees scramble to recover
- Customer trust diminishes if sensitive data is breached
- Insurance rates increase significantly after cyber incidents
The average business email compromise cost is {{ 129000 | numberFormat }}, a sum that can devastate many small businesses during their most critical time.
Secure Your Holidays: Celebrate, Don't Clean Up
The holiday season should focus on growth and celebration, not on recovering from wire fraud. A simple staff meeting, clear policies, and layered security measures go a long way toward keeping cybercriminals at bay.
Remember: Orion's loss could have been prevented with a single verification phone call. With proactive awareness and straightforward checks, your business can avoid becoming the next cautionary story.
Ready to fortify your team before the New Year? Click here or give us a call at (419) 522-4001 to schedule a 15-Minute Discovery Call with us and we'll walk you through quick, practical steps to keep your business safe. Don't let cybercriminals steal your holiday success; the greatest gift you can give your company this season is peace of mind.
