CrowdStrike's blog post provides an in-depth analysis of how eCrime, financially motivated cybercriminal activities, fluctuates throughout the year, particularly during the holiday season when users' defenses are typically lowered. It introduces the CrowdStrike eCrime Index (ECX), a tool launched in 2021 to assess the health of the digital underground economy by monitoring various factors such as ransom demands, cryptocurrency trends, and vulnerabilities. The post highlights two significant peaks in eCrime activity over the past year, correlating these with global events like the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the holiday season. It emphasizes the persistence of command-and-control servers and the prevalence of big game hunting, including ransomware, as major threats. Additionally, it discusses the human susceptibility to spam and phishing scams, especially during high shopping periods like Black Friday and Cyber Monday, and outlines common scams targeting both consumers and retailers. The article underscores the importance of threat intelligence and digital risk monitoring in staying ahead of cyber threats, leveraging the ECX and CrowdStrike's ongoing analysis to provide early warnings and insights into cybercriminal behavior.