Launched on January 28, 2026, by the FBI's Cyber Division, Operation Winter SHIELD (Securing Homeland Infrastructure by Enhancing Layered Defense) is a coordinated national campaign designed to strengthen cyber resilience. 

Instead of just raising general awareness, the FBI designed this campaign to focus on implementation. By pulling insights directly from real-world cyber investigations, the bureau identified the most common ways hackers and nation-state actors breach systems. They then condensed these findings into highly effective, actionable steps that organizations and individuals can take to freeze out cyber threats.

The 10 High-Impact Actions

The core of Operation Winter SHIELD revolves around 10 priority defenses. While aimed primarily at businesses and critical infrastructure, many of these principles apply to personal digital safety as well:

1.  Adopt phish-resistant authentication:  Moving away from SMS-based two-factor authentication in favor of hardware security keys or passkeys.

2.  Implement a risk-based vulnerability management program: Keeping software updated and patching critical bugs immediately.

3.  Track and retire end-of-life technology: Replacing old, unsupported hardware and software that no longer receive security updates.

4.  Manage third-party risk: Ensuring that outside vendors with network access aren't a weak link.

5.  Protect and preserve security logs: Keeping a secure history of system logins to spot unrecognized devices and unauthorized access.

6.  Maintain offline, immutable backups: Keeping isolated backups of data that ransomware cannot reach or alter, and regularly testing that they can be restored.

7.  Identify and protect internet-facing systems: Knowing exactly what company assets are exposed to the internet and securing them.

8.  Strengthen email authentication: Using robust filtering and protections to block malicious content and phishing attempts.

9.  Reduce administrator privileges: Giving elevated access only to the users who absolutely need it for their daily tasks.

10. Exercise incident response plans: Regularly running drills with stakeholders so everyone knows what to do if a breach occurs.

Who is it for?

While it was built with large corporations, government agencies, and critical infrastructure in mind, the FBI has explicitly stated that Operation Winter SHIELD is for everyone. They offer adapted guidance for small businesses and individual users—such as turning on automatic updates for personal devices, using password managers, and checking social media login logs for suspicious activity.