Late Summer Is Open Season for Cyberattacks on Construction Companies
August might mean project closeouts, late-phase inspections, and trying to get ahead of fall bids—but for hackers, it’s prime time.
As crews rotate out for vacation, project managers work remotely, and email inboxes fill with back-to-school and travel messages, cybercriminals take advantage of the chaos.
In fact, recent studies from cybersecurity vendors like ProofPoint and Check Point show that phishing attacks spike during summer, especially in August. For Salt Lake City construction companies depending on reliable IT services and cybersecurity support, this seasonal trend presents a serious risk.
Why Construction Companies Are Especially Vulnerable in August
Hackers know the industry. They know that jobsite superintendents might be checking emails from hotel Wi-Fi. That the accounting team might be short-staffed and working remote. That your IT manager is juggling vacation schedules while trying to keep field crews connected.
This is the perfect time for phishing emails to slip through.
A few trends driving late-summer phishing attacks:
- Travel Scams: Fake emails mimicking Airbnb, Delta, or Marriott prompt employees to click on spoofed links from work devices. According to Check Point Research, May 2025 saw a 55% increase in vacation-related domain registrations—with 1 in every 21 flagged as malicious.
- Back-to-School Impersonations: Emails pretending to be from local universities or student loan services target employees with personal interests—but one wrong click on a company device can compromise shared drives, project files, or estimating software.
- AI-Enhanced Phishing: These aren’t the poorly written scams of the past. Hackers are now using artificial intelligence to craft near-perfect messages that pass most spam filters.
And if someone opens one of these emails while accessing their Procore dashboard, BIM files, or job costing software—your entire operation is at risk.
Salt Lake City Construction Firms: How to Prevent a Phishing-Induced Disaster
The truth is, even the best IT company or network provider can’t stop human error without training and proactive tools. That’s why it’s critical to combine employee awareness with modern cybersecurity tech that’s built for construction workflows.
Here’s what construction teams in Salt Lake City should do right now:
- Train Your Teams (Field and Office): Everyone from project engineers to site supers needs basic phishing awareness. Construction companies often overlook field workers in IT training—but they’re the ones getting the most emails from outside vendors and subs.
- Double-Check URLs and Sender Info: Scam links often use domain endings like .info or typos like proccore.com. Train staff to hover over links and verify email addresses—even during the busiest bid week.
- Don’t Click—Search: If an email urges you to “log in” to a platform like Bluebeam or Autodesk, go directly to the site instead of clicking the email link.
- Use MFA Across the Board: Multifactor authentication should be enabled for every account tied to your projects—especially estimating, financials, and document control systems.
- Avoid Public Wi-Fi Without a VPN: When your team’s using airport or hotel Wi-Fi, make sure they connect through a secure VPN to protect sensitive project data.
- Separate Work and Personal Accounts: Never check personal email on a company device. It’s one of the most common ways ransomware gets through to shared drives.
- Deploy Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR): EDR tools track activity across all endpoints (laptops, tablets, field devices), flagging phishing attempts and isolating threats before they spread. If you don’t have EDR deployed, ask your Salt Lake City IT provider why.
The Bottom Line: Construction IT Support Has to Adapt to Seasonal Threats
Phishing isn’t just a general business problem—it’s a construction operations risk. One click from the estimating team, and suddenly a subcontractor invoice is rerouted. One infected file, and your architectural drawings get encrypted.
The combination of AI, social engineering, and end-of-summer distractions makes August a high-alert month for construction cybersecurity in Salt Lake City.
That’s why Qual IT partners with construction firms like yours—to provide proactive, construction-focused managed IT services, network security, and endpoint protection designed for the realities of jobsite tech and field teams.
Get Ahead of the Threat Before It Hits Your Inbox
Not sure if your team’s protected against this wave of phishing threats? Don’t wait until someone clicks the wrong link and shuts down your jobsite server.
Click here to book your FREE Construction Cybersecurity Assessment
No commitment. No jargon. Just a clear assessment from a team that understands construction IT—and what it takes to keep your projects on track.
