Almost a year back — It was a crisp November afternoon, and Sarah, the Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) at a rapidly growing Fintech firm, was wrapping the final touches on the company’s Thanksgiving plans. As she thought about the upcoming holiday, which would be filled with family, food, and fun, her phone buzzed with an urgent email from her security team.
Subject: Urgent: Possible Cybersecurity Threat Detected
The message was from James, her lead security engineer: “Sarah, we’ve detected unusual activity on one of our systems. It seems like there’s a potential ransomware attack underway. We need to take action before this gets worse. Can you join the team in 10?”
Her stomach sank.
Thanksgiving was just a few days away, and she was looking forward to the usual chaos of preparing the meal—this year’s turkey was set to be a very cold turkey, though, if her team didn’t act fast. With her family arriving soon, the timing couldn’t be worse.
The Calm Before the Storm
Sarah had seen this kind of thing before—cyberattacks never seemed to respect holidays or weekends. They always came when least expected, and when her mind was elsewhere. As a CISO, she’d long been aware of the shifting cybersecurity landscape: ransomware attacks, phishing scams, and the rise of AI-driven cyberattacks were the new normal.
As she joined the virtual meeting, James filled her in. “We’ve been tracking a sharp uptick in phishing emails targeting employees over the last 48 hours. One of our colleagues clicked on a link, and it looks like they’ve triggered a ransomware payload. The system is locking down files.”
“Okay, keep calm,” Sarah responded. “We know how to handle this. Let’s follow the incident response protocol.”
Her mind raced back to the cybersecurity trends that had dominated industry discussions throughout the year—ransomware-as-a-service (RaaS) platforms, AI-driven phishing, and cybercriminals’ growing sophistication. Every holiday season brought a surge in cyberattacks, and this year’s trends were no different.
A Thanksgiving Challenge: Ransomware and Beyond
As the team worked quickly to contain the threat, Sarah reflected on the evolving nature of cybersecurity threats. It was one thing to face a breach; it was another to know that cyber threats had reached new levels of sophistication.
Ransomware-as-a-Service (RaaS):
Cybercriminals no longer needed advanced technical skills to launch successful attacks. Ransomware-as-a-service platforms made it easier than ever for even low-level hackers to execute devastating attacks on businesses of all sizes. The rise of these platforms had led to a proliferation of attacks, especially targeting smaller and mid-sized companies that didn’t have the resources to defend against them.
AI-Powered Phishing:
Another alarming trend that had emerged in recent months was the increasing use of AI in phishing attacks. AI-driven tools could now craft messages that mimicked human speech patterns with alarming accuracy, making it harder for employees to recognize suspicious emails. It was no longer just about poor grammar or obvious typos—these attacks were incredibly sophisticated, and even the most cautious employees had become vulnerable.
Cloud Security and Compliance:
The shift to cloud computing had accelerated, bringing with it a host of new vulnerabilities. While the cloud offered flexibility and scalability, it also introduced new attack surfaces. Ensuring compliance with evolving data protection regulations, while securing vast amounts of data in the cloud, had become a constant challenge for security teams.
And then there was the insider threat, which, though often overlooked, was still a major concern. Employees, especially those working remotely, often had access to critical company data, and if their credentials were compromised or misused, it could lead to a devastating breach.
A Solution in Sight: Cold Turkey, Hot Response
As her team worked around the clock to mitigate the attack, Sarah couldn’t help but smile. Thanksgiving was always a time for reflection, and she realized that the resilience of her organization’s security posture had come a long way. They had implemented robust multi-factor authentication (MFA), a system of automated security checks, and AI-powered threat detection systems to help spot unusual activities early on. These layers of security enabled them to identify and isolate the ransomware payload before it could spread further.
The team was also prepared with a solid data backup and disaster recovery plan, ensuring that critical systems could be restored without paying a ransom. It was the digital equivalent of the cold turkey approach—no negotiations, no compromises, just a clean recovery process.
After several tense hours, Sarah was able to call the attack contained. The systems were back online, and the threat had been neutralized before any real damage was done. It wasn’t just luck—it was the result of months of careful planning and preparation.
Thanksgiving Resilience in 2025
Cybersecurity trends always teach a lesson, if the student is attentive. Sarah’s team was attentive!
That evening, Sarah joined her family at the dinner table. The turkey, while still a little cold from the delay, was as delicious as ever. As she looked around the table, she thought about how her role as CISO had evolved over the years. Cybersecurity was no longer just a reactive task; it was about creating an environment of resilience, education, and continuous adaptation to emerging threats.
While many families gathered around the table to share their gratitude for their loved ones, Sarah couldn’t help but feel thankful for the lessons of the past year. The challenges of cybersecurity had only deepened her commitment to protecting her business, her team, and their customers.
“Here’s to the cold turkey,” she said with a grin, raising her glass. “Both in the kitchen and in cybersecurity.”
Everyone laughed, unaware of the close call with the ransomware attack, but Sarah knew that, in the world of cybersecurity, staying ahead of the trends was the true recipe for success. And, just like Thanksgiving dinner, the lessons learned would be savored long after the event.
As Sarah finished her meal, she couldn’t help but reflect on the cybersecurity trends that had made the holiday season a bit more stressful than usual. But the experience had reinforced a key takeaway: the fight against cyber threats was never over—it was an ongoing effort, requiring constant vigilance, resilience, and adaptation to new risks. For businesses and security professionals, the season of giving thanks was also the season for reinforcing defenses, securing systems, and preparing for the next wave of cyber challenges.
In the end, cold turkey might have been the meal that night, but it was her team’s hot response to emerging cybersecurity trends that truly saved the day. This year, Sarah is joining Chef Fabio Viviani for an intimate and interactive virtual cooking experience, live from his home kitchen.
Let’s see how Sarah’s 2024 Thanksgiving afternoon shapes up. Stay tuned for more updates from our CyberTech Media Room.
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