Cyber threats aren’t just something that happen to “other people’s companies” in far-off places. If you’re a business owner or IT decision-maker in Texas or Oklahoma, you’ve probably noticed the digital winds picking up speed. In fact, cybersecurity in Texas and Oklahoma is no longer a niche IT concern — it’s mission critical, as much a part of business survival as keeping the lights on and A/C humming (and lord knows we’re not getting far if the A/C goes out).

Just how wild has it gotten out there? Consider this: globally, cyberattacks now occur every 39 seconds on average. Pause and let that sink in. By the time you finish reading this section, another business somewhere will have been hit. And our local region is far from immune.

Cybersecurity in Texas is strained — the state has been among the most targeted states for cyberattacks since 2023, with some of the Lone Star State’s biggest companies suffering data breaches. Meanwhile, Oklahoma got a somewhat backhanded compliment: a 2024 study ranked it among the 10 least vulnerable states to cyber-attacks (41st out of 50). But before Oklahomans start feeling too comfortable, note that this ranking hasn’t kept hackers at bay — in the last months of 2023, two major Oklahoma hospital systems were hit by cyberattacks. In other words, even if Oklahoma is relatively less targeted per capita, threat actors are still knocking on the door (sometimes literally, as we’ll see).

Why is cybersecurity in Texas and Oklahoma in the crosshairs? One big reason: the lucrative industries and data housed here. Texas’ booming economy and many large firms make it an attractive target. Some experts even point to a lack of cybersecurity investment and staffing in key industries, which leaves tempting gaps for hackers. Oklahoma, while smaller, has critical infrastructure (energy, anyone?) and healthcare networks that hackers covet. The bottom line: whether you’re a Dallas retailer, an OKC hospital, a Midland oil company, or a Tulsa bank, 2025’s cyber threats are your problem too.

So, what are the top cybersecurity threats facing businesses in our region this year? Let’s break down the biggest perils as we explore how to protect the business data you work so hard to grow.

Ransomware: A Texas Hold Up

Think of ransomware as the digital version of an old Western bank robbery, except the bandits lock up your data instead of opening the vault (and they demand cryptocurrency, not cash, to give it back). Ransomware has been an absolute headache for cybersecurity in Texas and Oklahoma… it’s been rampaging through businesses of all sizes. It’s easily one of the top threats in 2025 (or any year, really) because it works — companies often feel they have no choice but to pay up or suffer disastrous downtime.

Recent local incidents of breached cybersecurity in Texas read like a cybercrime horror story. In Texas, the City of Dallas was hit by a major ransomware attack in May 2023, forcing city services offline and racking up at least $8.5 million in recovery costs (yes, you read that right… eight million dollars, poof, gone, just to clean up the mess.)

Over in Oklahoma, hospitals haven’t been spared either. Late last year, a ransomware attack on Ardent Health Services (which operates several Tulsa-area hospitals) crippled systems and even forced some emergency rooms to divert patients. Imagine dealing with a medical emergency only to find the nearest ER turning you away because hackers have the computers hostage — that’s the reality we faced.

And the hits keep coming: In September 2024, Great Plains Regional Medical Center in Oklahoma was struck by ransomware that compromised the personal data of ~133,000 individuals. The attackers didn’t just lock files; they stole sensitive patient info (names, Social Security numbers, health details — the whole nine yards). Healthcare organizations are prime targets for ransomware because their data is incredibly sensitive and downtime can be life-threatening, making them more likely to pay up. (There’s a reason the healthcare sector is at the forefront of ransomware stats)

It’s not just big-city targets, either. Texas’s critical infrastructure has taken blows: for example, in late 2023, the North Texas Municipal Water District (serving 2 million+ residents) was hit by ransomware that disrupted systems and stole thousands of files of customer data. Even a Texas county appraisal district got tagged — Tarrant County had a $700,000 ransom demand in 2023 2023.

Oil and gas companies, so vital to our region, also have a bullseye on them. In one breach, West Texas Gas had nearly 45,000 Texans’ data affected when hackers accessed and deleted confidential files. The thought of either a pipeline being shut down or customer data spilled all over the dark web is enough to keep any Texas oil exec up at night.

Why is ransomware so prevalent? Quite simply, it’s profitable. Ransomware gangs (some with cool-sounding names like Royal, Daixin Team, or others) can paralyze a business and extort five, six, or seven figures with relative ease. It’s why cybersecurity in Texas is so tenuous… the targets are big and profitable, and the tactics do work a LOT of the time… And thanks to the rise of cryptocurrency and anonymous communication, it’s hard for law enforcement to catch them in the act. For businesses in Texas and Oklahoma, this means you must be on guard constantly. Regular data backups, network monitoring, and strong incident response plans are the order of the day (more on these later).

Oh, and if you’re thinking “We’re just a small business, nobody would bother with us,” think again. At least 75% of small businesses experienced a cyber attack in the past year, and ransomware doesn’t discriminate by company size. In fact, smaller companies can be seen as low-hanging fruit due to often weaker defenses. We’ve seen mom-and-pop shops, local clinics, even county governments in our area all fall victim. It’s a proverbial ransomware rodeo out there, and every business is in the ring (whether they like it or not).

Phishing and Social Engineering: Hook, Line, and Sinker

Not all cyber threats smash in through the digital equivalent of the front door. Many simply trick someone on the inside to open the door for them. Phishing and social engineering attacks remain rampant in 2025, and they’re as relevant in Austin, DFW and OKC as they are anywhere else. If ransomware is the guns-blazing bandit, phishing is the smooth-talking con artist…. it’s yet another threat vector stalking cybersecurity in Texas.

Here’s the playbook: an attacker sends a carefully crafted email (or text, or even voice call) pretending to be someone trustworthy — a bank, a vendor, maybe your CEO — and baits you into clicking a malicious link or handing over credentials. Next thing you know, malware is installed or your account is compromised. A whopping 92% of malware finds its way into systems through emails, and these fraudulent messages are getting more convincing by the day.

We even saw the mighty fall to phishing: In late 2024, the U.S. Treasury Department was breached by hackers largely because of a phishing and social engineering attack. If federal government systems can be fooled by a well-crafted phish, any business in Texas or Oklahoma can, too.

It’s not that our folks aren’t smart — it’s that the scams are just that sneaky. One click on a bogus “invoice” attachment or a login prompt that looks legit, and boom: hackers are swimming in your network like they own the place.

One particularly nasty variant relevant to businesses is Business Email Compromise (BEC), where attackers impersonate a company executive or partner via email and trick employees into sending money or sensitive data. This isn’t a hypothetical threat; it’s causing real damage. The FBI reports that BEC scams cost victims nearly $3 billion in reported losses in 2023 alone. We’d wager a decent chunk of that involved companies in Texas — after all, with our large number of businesses, the state often ranks high in overall cybercrime reports.

Locally, we’ve heard stories like a Dallas company almost wiring tens of thousands of dollars to a fraudulent account because an email looked like it came from the CEO (who was supposedly “on vacation and needed a favor”). Or an Oklahoma City firm that had a payroll redirect scam — an HR staffer got an email that seemed legit to change a direct deposit info for an employee, but it was actually a thief trying to reroute a paycheck. These things happen more often than you’d think, and they start with simple phishing tactics.

The scary part? Often, your own employees might unwittingly open the door to hackers. It’s usually employees who accidentally provide the opening that attackers exploit. It’s not about blame; it’s about awareness. Social engineering preys on human nature — our trust, our busy-ness, even our fears. Phishing emails in 2025 might reference current events, local news, or use personal details scraped from social media to seem convincing. For example, an email to a Houston business owner might mention a “recent Texas Comptroller notice” to spark urgency, while an Oklahoma business might see something about an “OG&E invoice issue”… anything to get that malicious click.

In short: phishing is the gateway to many of the worst cyberattacks, including ransomware. The best defense here is good old skepticism and training — more on that in the protection section. But first, let’s talk about who in our region is feeling the heat the most.

Industries in the Crosshairs: Oil & Gas, Healthcare, Finance and More

Every business is a target, but some industries are especially attractive to cybercriminals in Texas and Oklahoma. Why? They either have valuable data, critical operations that can’t afford downtime, or both. Let’s shine a spotlight on a few key sectors:

• Oil & Gas / Energy: The lifeblood of Texas and a significant sector in Oklahoma. Energy companies have industrial control systems (think pipelines, refineries, power grids) that, if breached, could cause not just data loss but physical disruptions. That makes them targets for both profit-driven hackers and nation-state actors. We all remember the Colonial Pipeline incident (which had Texas connections and caused gas shortages in 2021), and closer to home, the West Texas Gas breach we mentioned earlier exposed tens of thousands of customer records. The state’s cybersecurity chief even warned that Texas’s expansive energy infrastructure presents unique vulnerabilities, with potential for cascading effects if attacked. In 2025, protecting pipelines and grids from ransomware or sabotage is a top priority (and yes, Oklahoma’s oil & gas folks, that goes for you too).
• Healthcare: Hospitals, clinics, and healthcare providers hold incredibly sensitive personal data — and as we’ve seen, they are ransomware magnets. The combination of valuable data and the urgency of keeping systems online (patient lives are on the line) means hackers see healthcare as a juicy target. Texas saw nearly 3 million people affected by breaches across 30+ healthcare organizations in 2023. Oklahoma’s largest health network, Integris Health, suffered a breach in late 2023 that exposed data of almost 2.4 million patients — yes, you read that right, million. Smaller providers aren’t safe either: a rural hospital like Great Plains Regional got hit, and even multi-state hospital chains (Ardent/Hillcrest) operating in Oklahoma were crippled by cyberattacks. Healthcare IT can sometimes lag in security (outdated software, anyone?), and attackers know it. It’s no wonder one cybersecurity professor bluntly said of hospitals: “They’re often weak” on cyber defenses. Ouch.
• Financial Services: Banks, credit unions, mortgage companies — they not only manage money but also loads of personal data. A breach here can yield identity theft galore or direct monetary theft. Texas has had its share of finance-related breaches. Remember the Mr. Cooper mortgage company breach that compromised 14.6 million customers, including about 1.18 million Texans? Or the fallout from the MOVEit software attack: it hit firms like Charles Schwab, PlainsCapital Bank (affecting ~170,000 Texans), and even some credit unions. Attackers sometimes go after third-party software used by multiple financial firms (like the MOVEit file transfer tool) — hit one vulnerability and you get a whole buffet of bank data. On top of that, fraud and BEC scams often target finance departments; one wrong wire transfer can cost millions. Financial companies in TX and OK are beefing up security, but criminals are equally stepping up their game, using tactics from credential stuffing to ATM malware. It’s a constant cat-and-mouse game.

To summarize some of these industry-specific risks and recent examples, here’s a quick rundown:

Threats by Industry in Texas & Oklahoma (2025)

Industry	Key Cyber Threats (2025)	Recent Local Example
Oil & Gas / Energy	Ransomware disrupting operations; Data breaches; Attacks on industrial controls (potential sabotage)	West Texas Gas data breach affected ~44,916 Texans (hackers accessed and deleted confidential pipeline files).
Healthcare	Ransomware attacks crippling hospital services; Data theft of patient records (for identity theft or extortion)	Integris Health (OK) cyberattack exposed ~2.4 million patients’ personal data in Nov 2023. (Plus, multiple TX hospital breaches — e.g. UT Southwestern in 2024).
Finance	Data breaches via third-party software; Phishing/BEC scams stealing funds; Insider threats	Mr. Cooper (Dallas-area mortgage lender) breach compromised 1.18M Texans’ info. Also, MOVEit hack hit TX banks (e.g. PlainsCapital) affecting ~170k Texans.

(And let’s not forget other sectors: Retailers face point-of-sale malware, education and government deal with everything from DDoS to espionage, and tech companies are always fending off IP theft. But the three industries above are seeing especially high threat levels in our region.)

Proactive Business Data Protection Strategies for 2025

Alright, by this point you might be feeling a bit like a duck in a shooting gallery — threats flying at you from all sides. It’s true, the landscape is pretty daunting. But it’s not all doom and gloom! The good news is there are practical, proactive steps you can take today to dramatically improve your company’s cybersecurity posture. Business owners in Texas and Oklahoma might be known for being tough and resourceful, and that applies in cyberspace too. Here’s how to protect your business data and keep those digital bandits at bay:

• Enable Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) Everywhere: We can’t emphasize this enough. Stolen or weak passwords are a common entry point – in the Fort Worth city hack, the attackers got in using compromised login credentials. Don’t let a single phished password be your downfall. MFA adds an extra verification step (like a code from your phone or a fingerprint) on top of the password. That way, even if hackers guess or steal the password, they still can’t get in without that second factor. It’s simple, cheap, and wildly effective at blocking many attacks. Think of MFA as the bouncer that stops the crook who managed to pick the lock from actually opening your door.
• Invest in Security Awareness Training: Your employees are your first line of defense and (if unprepared) your weakest link. Regular training sessions can teach staff how to spot phishing emails, suspicious texts, and other scams. Make it engaging – there are even phishing simulations you can run to keep everyone on their toes. The goal is to create a culture where it’s okay to double-check before clicking. After all, many breaches happen because an employee unknowingly clicks a bad link or opens a dodgy attachment. Turn your people from potential targets into additional sensors that can detect and report threats.
• Keep Software Updated and Patch Known Vulnerabilities: Remember that case where a Domino’s Pizza franchisee in College Station got breached? The lawsuit alleged the company was using outdated software, which made it an easy target. This is a common story – whether it’s an unpatched server, an old VPN appliance, or just not applying Windows updates, outdated tech is low-hanging fruit for attackers. Make sure you’re applying security patches promptly for your operating systems, software, and network devices. Yes, those annoying update prompts actually matter! A strong patch management routine can shut the door on many exploits before hackers waltz in.
• Regular Backups and a Solid Disaster Recovery Plan: The best way to rob a ransomware gang of their power is to have reliable data backups and a plan to restore systems quickly. If you can wipe affected systems and restore from backups, you don’t have to pay the ransom. But backups need to be frequent, tested (no one wants to find out their backups failed after an incident), and stored securely (offline or in cloud storage that ransomware can’t reach). Also, create a disaster recovery plan that outlines how you’d respond to different scenarios – not just cyberattacks, but any IT disaster. Know your priorities: what apps or data would you restore first? Who needs to be contacted? In the chaos of an attack, a well-rehearsed plan is gold. Fortification is crucial but having a robust recovery plan in place is just as critical to ensure business continuity when attacks happen.
• Adopt a Zero Trust Mindset: “Zero Trust” isn’t just a buzzword; it’s the modern approach to network security. It means trust no one by default, whether they’re outside or inside your network. In practice, this looks like strict access controls, network segmentation, and continuous monitoring. For example, an employee in accounting probably doesn’t need access to R&D design files – so don’t give broad network access by default. If a hacker does get in via one account, segmentation can contain their movements. Cloud services, remote work, and all that have blurred the traditional network perimeter, so it’s safer to assume any user or device could be compromised and verify accordingly (hence “never trust, always verify”). Many businesses are turning to security frameworks like zero trust in 2025 to limit the damage of breaches.
• Protect Your Crown Jewels (Data Protection): Identify what your most sensitive or mission-critical data is – customer information? Trade secrets? Financial records? – and give that an extra layer of protection. This could mean encryption (so even if data is stolen, the thieves can’t read it without the key), stricter access rules, or monitoring tools that alert you to unusual access of those files. For example, an accounting database with client Social Security numbers should be encrypted and locked down like Fort Knox. Likewise, consider segmenting your networks so that an intrusion in, say, a guest Wi-Fi network can’t reach your core databases.
• Consider Managed IT or Cybersecurity Services: Implementing all the above can feel overwhelming, especially for small and midsize businesses that don’t have a dedicated security team. This is where managed IT services or security providers come in. Partnering with a good Managed Service Provider (MSP) means you get experts who can handle a lot of the heavy lifting – 24/7 threat monitoring, regular patching, data backups, staff training, you name it. It’s like having an on-call cybersecurity department. An MSP offers a streamlined solution that handles your cybersecurity needs, freeing you to focus on your business.

By taking these proactive steps, you’re stacking the odds in your favor. Cyber attacks may be inevitable (nobody can promise 100% prevention), but whether they turn into full-blown disasters is often up to how prepared you are. Think of it like storm-proofing your house on the Gulf Coast: you can’t stop a hurricane from coming, but you can board up the windows, have a generator ready, and keep an evacuation plan. For cyber “storms”, preparation means strong security measures, regular drills (training), and an incident response plan.

As always, if any of this is enough to make your vision go blurry, give us a call — we’d love to help you navigate this so you don’t have to think about it and can go back to doing what you do best… running your business.