At first glance, the water seems perfectly still.
That's part of what makes Shark Week so compelling every year: the threat is rarely obvious on the surface. The real danger is what's already moving below it.
Cybercriminals work the same way. The risks businesses face today are built to blend into normal operations until the moment something fails, money changes hands, or systems stop working.
And during the summer months, when routines change, employees travel, and oversight becomes lighter, attackers know companies are often less alert.
Here are three threats to watch for right now.
1. Counterfeit invoices and vendor impersonation
Many attacks don't require a technical breach. Often, all it takes is one email that looks convincing enough to trust.
This tactic is known as business email compromise (BEC), and it relies on pretending to be a vendor, supplier, or executive your team already knows.
The message looks routine, someone sends payment to the "vendor," and by the time the mistake is discovered, the money is gone.
These scams increase during vacation season for one simple reason. When the person who normally approves invoices is out, requests are often redirected to someone unfamiliar with what's standard. Temporary replacements are less likely to question urgency, and attackers count on that hesitation.
The solution is straightforward: create a verification step for every financial request that comes through email. A quick callback to a trusted number, not the one listed in the message, can stop most of these attacks before they cause harm.
2. Phishing attacks aimed at distracted employees
Phishing works because it targets people in moments when they're rushed, distracted, or overloaded.
Cybercriminals deliberately build these moments into their attacks. A busy employee sees a password reset alert and clicks without thinking. Someone gets a text that appears to come from IT. An email arrives just before a meeting demanding urgent approval for a wire transfer. Nobody pauses to confirm because slowing down feels inconvenient.
The strongest defense isn't just technology; it's a security-minded culture.
Employees should feel empowered to stop and verify when something seems suspicious:
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An unexpected login request
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A payment instruction that came out of nowhere
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A link in an email they weren't expecting
Attackers depend on speed. When you slow things down, you take that advantage away.
3. Third-party risks that spread quickly
When a vendor with access to your systems is compromised, the threat doesn't stay with them. It moves directly into your environment through every connection they have to your business.
This is supply chain exposure, and most businesses have far more of it than they realize. Software tools connected to the network, service providers holding credentials, and contractors whose access was never removed after a project ended can all create entry points many owners never fully map out.
Outsourcing a service does not outsource responsibility.
To understand your supply chain exposure, you need clear answers to three questions:
1.
Which vendors can access your data or systems?
2.
What are they connecting to?
3.
Who is internally responsible for managing those relationships?
If those answers aren't clear, your business may be more exposed than you think.
By the time you notice it, it's already in motion
Sharks don't announce themselves, and neither do the cybercriminals targeting your business today.
The companies that get hit aren't always the ones that miss obvious warning signs. They're often the ones that assume everything is safe because nothing looks wrong.
Summer is when schedules loosen, attention drifts, and the water looks calmest. It's also when attackers tend to be most active.
We help businesses uncover where they're vulnerable across vendors, employee behavior, and everyday operations before a problem turns into a crisis.
If you're not sure where your business stands, schedule a 15-Minute Discovery Call.
Click here or give us a call at 404-719-5222 to schedule your free 15-Minute Discovery Call.
