Hackers spoil Thanksgiving

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LONDON – As Americans tuck into their turkey for the Thanksgiving holiday on Thursday, hackers and malware attacks are expected to peak during the holiday period, warns UK-based IT security consultancy Global Secure Systems (GSS).

The Thanksgiving weekend – referred to as Black Friday and Cyber Monday by IT experts – creates increased vulnerability for online systems.

"The bad news is that US hackerdom usually takes advantage of the long holiday weekend to generate all sorts of malware and hacker attacks on internet-connected computer systems worldwide," says David Hobson, managing director of GSS.

Firms should conduct reviews and ensure they have the latest security patches in place. “They should prepare for the worst and review their ongoing business continuity arrangements in the event of an IT disaster striking.”

“Thanksgiving in the US is the time when retailers give out freebies to their customers. Companies in the UK should watch out for hacker freebies that take the shape of malware-infected email and other digital mayhem. This is always a bad time of the year for malware,” says Hobson.