Summer Holiday Phishing Scams are on the Rise

As the summer holiday season gets into full swing, cyber criminals are working just as hard as travel agents, airlines and accommodation providers. Recent research highlights a sharp increase in phishing scams targeting holidaymakers, with attackers launching more travel-related campaigns than ever before.

The reason is simple: holidays create the perfect conditions for social engineering. People are booking flights, checking hotel confirmations, comparing last-minute deals and clicking on delivery-style updates for travel documents.

They are often distracted, time-pressured and using personal devices or public Wi-Fi. For hackers, that combination presents an ideal opportunity to steal passwords, payment details and personal information.

According to Check Point Research, the hospitality, travel and recreation sector saw an average of 2,291 weekly cyberattacks per organisation in May 2026 alone.

Attack volumes have more than doubled compared with May 2023, while tens of thousands of new travel-related domains have been registered, with some already flagged as malicious or suspicious. Fake versions of well-known booking platforms are being used to trick victims into entering login credentials or card information.

For businesses, the risk goes beyond employees losing money on a fake holiday booking. A successful phishing email can compromise a Microsoft 365 account, expose sensitive company data, trigger fraudulent payment requests or give attackers a foothold into wider systems. During the summer, reduced staffing levels and out-of-office processes can make it harder to spot suspicious activity quickly.

Forth Tech recommends taking a layered approach to protection. Start with the basics: check website addresses carefully, avoid clicking links in unexpected emails, and be wary of deals that seem too good to be true.

Employees should use strong, unique passwords and multi-factor authentication wherever possible. Businesses should also ensure email defence, endpoint protection, web filtering and Microsoft 365 security controls are properly configured and monitored.

Training is equally important. Phishing scams are becoming more convincing, especially as criminals use seasonal themes, familiar brands and urgent language to pressure people into acting quickly. Regular cyber awareness training helps staff pause, question and report suspicious messages before damage is done.

Forth Tech helps organisations strengthen their defences with proactive IT support, cyber security services, Microsoft 365 defence, phishing and cyber training, dark web monitoring, endpoint detection and response, and 24/7 managed security monitoring. With attackers increasing their activity during peak holiday periods, prevention and early detection are essential.

Before you or your team switch off for a well-earned break, make sure your cyber security is not taking a holiday too. A few simple checks today could prevent a costly incident tomorrow. Speak to our team for help keeping your staff and business safe and secure this summer.