How to keep cyber safe in 2026
How to keep cyber safe in 2026 looks very different to how it did in 2025 — and that shift is catching many businesses off guard.
Gone are the days when spotting a malicious email was as easy as noticing a typo on a café chalkboard. You could identify the red flags in seconds, delete the email, and move on with your day.
Today, it’s not that simple.
Phishing emails no longer scream urgency or desperation. They blend in.
They sound calm. Polite. Reasonable.
Sender addresses appear legitimate. Language is professional. And instead of demands for money, you’re asked to “please review the attached” or “confirm this when you have a moment.”
Phishing scams have become more intelligent, more targeted, and far more convincing.
Hackers are now using artificial intelligence, breached data sets, and advanced social engineering techniques to craft emails that appear authentic, timely, and trustworthy. They impersonate suppliers, colleagues, directors, and even internal IT teams with alarming accuracy.
Hackers have raised the bar — which means your awareness of how to be cyber safe in 2026 needs to rise with it.
Look out for emotional manipulation
Modern phishing emails don’t rely on panic anymore. Instead, they exploit human nature.
Hackers use emotional cues that trigger trust, helpfulness, or curiosity — the same instincts that make good employees want to respond quickly and assist.
Common examples include:
“As discussed earlier…” (trust)
“Can you quickly assist with this?” (helpfulness)
“Please see attached.” (curiosity)
These phrases sound normal. Professional. Harmless.
That’s the point.
Attackers know they don’t need fear to succeed. They need you to feel comfortable enough to act without thinking twice.
Context is key
Phishing emails are no longer random or obviously out of place. They are carefully timed and aligned to look relevant within your business context.
At first glance, everything appears reasonable — but often there’s a subtle misalignment with your usual processes.
Before responding, pause and ask yourself:
Is it normal for me to receive this type of request from this person?
Does this involve a project I’m aware of, but not actively involved in?
Is this email asking me to bypass normal approval or payment processes?
If the sender claims to be your manager or a senior leader, dig a little deeper:
Does the message avoid internal language or terminology they would normally use?
Does it discourage verification or create a sense of urgency without explanation?
Does it sidestep your usual approval chain?
Those small inconsistencies are often the only warning you’ll get.
Don’t open attachments
When an email seems slightly suspicious, it can be tempting to open the attachment to confirm whether it’s legitimate.
That’s exactly what attackers are counting on.
Malicious attachments can include PDFs, Word documents, Excel files, or HTML files. Once opened or downloaded, they can:
Install spyware
Trigger ransomware
Steal login credentials
Redirect you to a fake website designed to capture passwords
Even if the file itself seems harmless, it may contain links to malicious sites that closely mimic legitimate platforms.
If an email feels off, do not open attachments.
Instead, look for other indicators:
Carefully inspect the sender’s email address
Hover over links or buttons without clicking to see where they lead
Check for subtle spelling or grammatical errors
Ask whether the email is demanding immediate action outside normal procedure
When in doubt, do nothing — and escalate.
Always notify management and your IT provider
Cyber incidents escalate quickly. What seems like a harmless click can turn into a business-wide issue in minutes.
If you receive a suspicious email:
Report it to management
Forward it to your IT provider
Do not delete it until advised
Early reporting can be the difference between a blocked attack and a full-scale breach.
Silence is what attackers rely on.
Have an IT provider that has your back
In today’s threat landscape, cyber security isn’t something businesses can afford to manage reactively — or alone.
When a cyber incident occurs, minutes matter. Without the right IT partner, small issues can quickly escalate into major outages, data loss, reputational damage, or financial loss. That’s why having an IT provider who actively protects your business is no longer optional — it’s critical.
At Dynamic Business Technologies, we don’t gamble with your business security. We take a proactive, layered approach to cyber protection, combining continuous monitoring, threat detection, system hardening, and staff education to reduce risk before it becomes a problem. Our team stays ahead of emerging threats, ensuring your systems, data, and people are protected against increasingly sophisticated attacks.
We work as an extension of your business — responding fast, advising clearly, and putting practical security measures in place that actually work in real-world environments.
If you’re ready to take cyber security seriously in 2026 and beyond, let us help you protect what matters most.