While seasonal workers and temporary employees can become invaluable assets for companies needing additional staffing at crucial times, small business owners should be mindful of the potential cybersecurity risks that come with short-term workers.

Here are 3 things you can do to help reinforce your company’s cybersecurity guardrails when hiring temporary employees, whether they’re coming on board to fill gaps left by planned time off or to bolster staffing for your busiest season.

Train Temporary Employees Like Permanent Staff

Provide temporary and seasonal workers with cybersecurity training as if they were joining your staff as full-time and permanent employees.

Some companies mistakenly bypass a cybersecurity review for temporary workers due to the pressure of getting them up to speed and on the job as soon as possible. Or sometimes there’s an assumption that this newly hired worker has gained cybersecurity best practices from previous employment experiences.

For whatever the reason a business owner might decide to overlook cybersecurity training for a just-hired seasonal employee — they’re putting the company and customer information at risk.

“These situations create opportunities for cybercriminals who frequently target less experienced users through phishing, social engineering, and credential theft attacks,” cautions  a post by BEI, a managed IT service and technology support company.

For example, a temporary employee without proper cybersecurity training may not be able to understand how to recognize a sophisticated phishing email, or they could unknowingly save sensitive documents to their personal device, says the blog on the BEI website.

IT management specialists at Framewerx points to interns as temporary employees who may require additional guidance.

“While these new additions provide fresh perspectives and support, they also introduce potential security risks,” says a Framewerx article. “Young staff members, often less experienced in corporate IT environments, might inadvertently compromise security protocols.”

It’s essential for businesses to go over IT security and company policies in detail, the post advises.

“Explain the importance of data protection, password management, and recognizing phishing attempts,” adds the article.

Review Cybersecurity Basics With All Staff

While it may seem like the most inconvenient time to go over your company’s basic cybersecurity practices with all staff when a seasonal worker is hired, your timing couldn’t be better.

Cybersecurity threats increase during the busy holiday shopping season for retailers, according to data, making cybersecurity precautions every more important.

“These risks continue to rise, and they intensify during high-traffic shopping seasons when the volume of money moving online makes retail a target,” explains a Shopify article about retail cybersecurity. 

Phishing and impersonation scams may become more prominent during busy shopping periods, when employees and customers are receiving greater volumes of promotional emails, tracking notices and discount offers.

“Phishing remains one of the most prevalent attack vectors in the retail sector, particularly during seasonal buying spikes,” says an article by Andy Syrewicze in Cyber Defense Magazine.

“Shoppers are flooded with promotional emails, tracking notifications, and discount codes, creating fertile ground for impersonation scams,” he writes.

“Training employees to recognize social engineering, validating sender domains, and deploying advanced email security tools can significantly reduce risk.”

The article also suggests retailers also educate customers with clear guidance on how official communications are sent to avoid brand impersonation scams. “This builds trust and prevents valued customers from getting conned.”

Do Systematic Off-Boarding Before They Leave.

Another common misstep by businesses comes at the end of a temporary worker’s stint. Once out the door, seasonal employees could leave behind what cybersecurity and IT specialists call "orphaned accounts.”

“While the role may be short-lived, the systems they touch are not,” explains a post by IT security firm TechBldrs. “Without a clear plan, temporary access can quietly outlive the worker, leaving behind active accounts no one remembers.”

It’s imperative for businesses owners to remove log-in access for seasonal workers at the end of their temporary employment, including email, VPN access, Microsoft 365 credentials and other shared permissions.

“These forgotten accounts can become easy targets for attackers,” says the TechBldrs article.

Take time to disable a seasonal worker's access to all accounts, file ownership and software programs before they walk out the door — make it part of a documented off-boarding process.

“Left unmanaged, temporary access can create serious security and cybersecurity compliance problems,” cautions the TechBldrs post.

 “Former contractors may still be able to access company files. Email accounts may remain active and vulnerable to phishing. Sensitive data could be exposed long after a project ends.”

In addition to email, a company’s offboarding checklist for temporary workers should include a review of cloud storage, remote access, and third-party applications, including access to shared files. 

A consistent, documented process can reduce the likelihood that accounts or permissions will be overlooked.