Hi all, I noticed the jokes didn't make it onto the recording, so here are some of my faves along with the holiday checklist and email template to staff. If you have additional resources or jokes to share, feel free to add to this chain! Also tagging @Robert Bastani because he also would've been on my cybersecurity dream team in the panel yesterday, in case he has anything else to add to the holiday checklist.
- In Local Health IT, half our job is fixing "user error" - which is a polite way of saying, they ignored the update 14 times.
And every time someone says, "It worked fine yesterday," I think, so did Internet Explorer in 2003. So did Lotus Notes in 1998.
- "I trust my backups about as much as I trust autocorrect in an outbreak report."
- "Remember, if you can't find your incident response plan - congratulations, you've just discovered Incident #1."
Here's the holiday email template for staff:
As we head into the holiday season, cyber threats tend to increase. Many organizations - including public health departments - become more vulnerable during this time because of reduced staffing, higher service demands, and slower response times from vendors and partners. Threat actors know this and often take advantage of it.
Please stay alert for phishing and social engineering attempts that use holiday-themed messages, such as:
If something feels off, don't click any links or open attachments. Report suspicious messages right away to the IT team.
We'll also be reinforcing cybersecurity awareness over the next few weeks, including refresher tips and simulated phishing exercises. Your vigilance is one of our strongest defenses.
Thank you for helping keep our systems and community data secure during this busy season.
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Angie McPherson
Senior Web Specialist
National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO)
Washington DC
(571)484-4663
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Original Message:
Sent: 11-13-2025 03:48 PM
From: Angie McPherson
Subject: Thank You for Joining LHIT: Strengthening Cybersecurity Defenses Ahead of the Holidays
Hi everyone,
Thank you for joining this month's Local Health IT (LHIT) Community of Practice meeting, "Strengthening Cybersecurity Defenses at Health Departments Ahead of the Holiday Season." We had a fantastic discussion with our panelists on practical strategies to prepare for the year-end surge in cyber threats, including:
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Reviewing and rehearsing downtime and incident response procedures.
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Updating patching and access controls before holiday leave.
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Engaging leadership early and communicating proactively with staff.
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Sharing information across jurisdictions to strengthen collective defenses.
Meeting Recording: Zoom
Presentation Slides: Attached
Holiday Checklist: Attached
We also heard great insights from attendees on real-world challenges-from managing vendor security to creating phishing awareness campaigns that actually work. Your participation and examples help strengthen our national network of local health IT leaders.
If you have resources, templates, or lessons learned to share, please send them to amcpherson@naccho.org for inclusion in future discussions or the NACCHO Toolbox.
Huge thanks to @Bob Brooks @Eric Singleton @Blake Scott for presenting today! Thank you again for your time and for the critical work you do to protect public health systems every day.
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Angie McPherson
Senior Web Specialist
National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO)
Washington DC
(571)484-4663
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