The summer slowdown is a busy time for cybercriminals. While your team sets their out of office replies and heads off for a well-earned break, attackers are watching closely, and many automatic messages give them exactly what they need.
These short replies are meant to be helpful. But when they reveal names, job roles, absence dates or contact details, they can quietly open the door to phishing scams, impersonation, and fraud. What looks like polite business etiquette can, in the wrong hands, become a blueprint for attack.
At a time when phishing and Business Email Compromise (BEC) scams continue to rise, businesses cannot afford to overlook the risks hidden in everyday communication.
“Attackers don’t always need to breach a system. Often, they just need the right name, the right timing, and a believable message. Out of office replies make that easier than most people realise,” says Kamran Bahdur, our Chief Information Officer.
Out of office replies seem harmless, but they can quietly introduce serious cyber risks. Below are five ways these automatic messages can be exploited:
Avoid sharing:
Use neutral language such as:
“I am currently unavailable. For urgent matters, please contact our main office inbox.”
The right people need to know who is off, but that information should always remain internal. However, if you work in a collaborative role, your colleagues may need to know when you’re off. If that’s the case, you should use one of the following formats:
These options keep availability clear without exposing details externally.
Too often, out-of-office replies are written casually or left to individual judgment.
But they are still external communications, and they carry the same risk as any public-facing message.
“Out of office replies often get written quickly and forgotten, but they are still external communications. That means they need to be treated with the same care as anything else that leaves your organisation. If you allow people to write their own replies without guidance, you’re creating an inconsistent message and an unnecessary risk. Set a simple template, keep the content neutral, and make reviewing those settings part of your regular security hygiene,” says Kamran Bahdur, our Chief Information Officer.
An automatic reply should confirm absence. That’s all. If it shares more than that, it’s doing too much.
If your teams are setting auto-replies this summer, now is the right time to review what they’re saying and who might be reading them.
Out of office replies are helpful, but they can also be risky. When they include too much detail, they hand attackers the tools they need to impersonate, mislead, and bypass normal checks.
At FLR Spectron, we help organisations close the security gaps created by everyday habits. From phishing resilience to secure communication practices, we support businesses that want to stay protected without slowing down how they work.