While shoppers are busy worrying about which holiday gift to purchase online, there may be another, more dangerous concern in cyber attacks.

To inform individuals on potential online dangers, the Department of Mathematics, Statistics and Computer Science and the Cyber Security Club lead a presentation Nov. 30 in Cudahy Hall titled “Staying Safe Shopping Online.” It outlined how attackers target consumers and provided tips for online protection.

“I think that it’s something to be aware of,” Drew Williams, event presenter and Ph.D. student in computational sciences, said. “It can definitely sound really scary…but the biggest thing is to just have that awareness.”

Two people attended the presentation, neither of them students. Williams said cyber threats are not on the forefront of student’s minds.

Thomas Kaczmarek, director of master of science in computing, said that while the largest online threat is to small and medium sized businesses, students should still be cautionary of potential cyber attacks.

“The holiday shopping is starting, I think most people feel they have everything under control and I hope they do,” said Kaczmarek.