Your Auto-Reply Might be Telling Cybercriminals More Than You’d Like
We’ve all done it—set an out-of-office reply and never thought twice about it. But while you’re enjoying vacation or focusing on a business trip, that auto-reply might be telling cybercriminals more than you’d like: your name, title, when you’re unavailable, who to contact in your absence, and sometimes even travel plans. For hackers, that’s a goldmine.
Armed with this info, they can time their attacks perfectly. A common scam looks like this:
Your auto-reply goes out → a hacker impersonates you or your alternate contact → they send an “urgent” request for money, passwords, or sensitive files → a well-meaning coworker responds, thinking it’s legitimate. By the time you’re back, the damage is done.
How to protect your business:
- Keep it vague: “I’m out of the office. For assistance, contact our main office at [info].”
- Train your team: Always verify urgent requests through another channel, like a phone call.
- Boost your defenses: Use strong email security tools and enable Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) everywhere.
Don’t give hackers an easy win. IT Radix can help you strengthen security, train your staff, and detect suspicious activity early—so you can focus on your work, not worry about your inbox. Contact us today to get started.
First published in our November 2025 IT Radix Resource newsletter