How being short-staffed makes your small business more vulnerable to scams

Finding good employees is one of the biggest challenges facing small business owners, according to the NFIB Small Business Economic Trends report.

We don't want to add to that worry, but there's another risk worth paying attention to: the more stretched your team becomes, the easier it can be to overlook scams, skip security checks or make mistakes that put your business at risk.

Here's what to pay attention to and how to protect your business.

Key takeaways

• Staffing shortages can increase cybersecurity risks when employees are rushed, distracted or handling unfamiliar tasks.
• Phishing, fake invoices and impersonation scams can be harder to spot when people are juggling multiple responsibilities.
• New hires, temporary workers and shared accounts can create additional security gaps.
• Simple procedures, limited account access and automated security protection can help small businesses stay safe, even with fewer people.

How do staffing shortages increase cybersecurity risks?

The NFIB's 2026 research shows just how difficult hiring has become for many small businesses:

• 23% of small business owners said labor quality or availability was their single most important business problem.
• 35% reported job openings they couldn't fill.
• 82% of owners hiring or trying to hire reported few or no qualified applicants.

“I own and operate a childcare business. I am seeing my costs increase dramatically, by more than 15% annually, and I am having an increasingly hard time finding staff. Online job postings receive a lot of interest and applications, but only about a third at best respond to interview requests. […]”
— Professional/business services, OH

“The quality of skilled labor is affecting my growth. I have given up on looking. My business is service-based, and the demand for accountants is increasing. If I could find the personnel, I could easily double, if not triple, my income.”
— Professional/business services, VA

For a business with only a handful of employees, even one unfilled position can make a difference. Someone has to take on the extra work, often while managing their usual responsibilities.

And that's where cybersecurity can become another concern. When people are busy, tired or covering unfamiliar tasks, it's easier to miss a suspicious email, approve a fraudulent payment or put off an important security update.

Here are five ways staffing shortages can leave your business more exposed to scams, and what you can do about them.

5 cybersecurity risks for short-staffed small businesses

Staffing shortages can affect more than daily operations. Here are five ways they can create security gaps and give scammers opportunities to target your business.

1. Rushed employees may overlook phishing and invoice scams

When employees cover for absent colleagues or take on extra responsibilities, they have less time to check every email or payment request. A fake invoice from a familiar supplier, especially one marked urgent, may slip through.

Invoice scams and business email compromise (BEC) attacks often rely on urgency to get people to act without verifying requests. A busy employee may approve a payment before noticing that the bank details have changed.

What you can do: Verify changes to payment details using a known phone number or another trusted channel. Never rely on the contact information provided in the message requesting the change.

2. New and temporary employees may miss scam warning signs

New employees may not yet know how the business operates, who approves payments or what legitimate requests from suppliers and managers look like.

Scammers can exploit that unfamiliarity with fake messages from the business owner, requests to purchase gift cards or urgent demands for employee information. Temporary workers and freelancers brought in to cover staffing gaps may face similar risks.

What you can do: Include basic cybersecurity guidance in onboarding. Explain payment procedures, who can request sensitive information and how to report suspicious messages. Encourage employees to verify unusual requests, even when they appear to come from management.

3. Shared passwords and excessive permissions create security gaps

When an employee is absent, sharing their login credentials or giving someone else broader access may seem like a practical shortcut.

But shared accounts make it difficult to track who accessed information or made changes. If credentials are compromised, attackers may gain access to sensitive business data. Access can also remain active long after temporary workers or employees leave.

What you can do: Give everyone individual accounts with access only to what they need. Use multifactor authentication (MFA) and a password manager, and remove access promptly when someone leaves.

4. Security updates and alerts get overlooked

Staffing shortages can mean routine cybersecurity tasks receive less attention. Software updates get postponed, security alerts go unchecked and vulnerabilities remain unresolved.

For small businesses without dedicated IT staff, these responsibilities often fall to employees already managing other priorities. Outdated software can give attackers an entry point, while missed alerts can delay the detection of threats.

What you can do: Enable automatic updates wherever possible and use security software that detects and blocks threats. Assign responsibility for reviewing alerts and prioritize critical security warnings.

5. Scammers can exploit recruitment difficulties

Businesses struggling to recruit staff may also become targets for recruitment scams.

Fraudsters can impersonate staffing agencies, promise access to qualified candidates or request upfront payments for recruitment services that don't exist. Malicious links and attachments disguised as job applications or résumés can also expose business systems to malware.

What you can do: Verify unfamiliar recruitment agencies before paying fees or sharing business information. Be cautious of unsolicited offers promising guaranteed results, and check suspicious links and attachments before opening them.

How to protect your small business when you're already stretched thin

When a business is short-staffed, cybersecurity shouldn't become another responsibility for an already busy team.

Beyond the precautions above, it helps to automate as much as possible and choose security tools that don't require constant attention or technical expertise.

Bitdefender Ultimate Small Business Security is designed for businesses with 2–25 employees, bringing protection for devices, online accounts, privacy and scams into one solution. It helps protect against phishing, malicious links, malware and other online threats, without requiring a dedicated IT team.

It also includes Scam Copilot, an AI-powered assistant trained to recognize scams targeting small businesses, helping owners and employees identify suspicious messages and potential fraud.

Try Bitdefender Ultimate Small Business Security free for 30 days. No credit card required.

You may also want to read:

• How scammers exploit small business owners’ biggest worries
• How to tell if your small business is properly protected
• The easiest way to manage security across all your business devices

FAQs

What scams should short-staffed businesses watch out for?

Phishing emails, fake invoices, business email compromise, impersonation scams and fraudulent recruitment offers are particularly relevant. Scammers may exploit urgency, unfamiliar tasks or gaps in normal verification procedures.

How can small businesses prevent scams without an IT team?

Start with MFA, automatic software updates, reliable cybersecurity protection and clear procedures for verifying payment requests. Give employees only the access they need and make sure everyone knows how to report suspicious activity.

Should temporary employees receive cybersecurity training?

Yes. Even a brief introduction can help temporary workers recognize phishing messages, understand payment procedures and know how to handle sensitive information. They should also receive individual accounts with limited permissions rather than sharing existing employee credentials.