During Thanksgiving week, it’s worth noting that cyber crime tends to surge during the holidays.

This time of year, consumers are in a spending mood, they’re distracted by merry-making, and they’re wielding credit cards while traveling.

On a personal note, I get aggravated that my vulnerable elderly parents are constantly bombarded with shady unsolicited “deals” online, especially during the holidays. I’m often compelled to step in and shield them from the hucksters.

Deloitte’s 2023 Black Friday-Cyber Monday Survey, which examines what retailers can expect from American shoppers between Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday, estimates that consumers plan to spend an average of $1,652 this season, surpassing prepandemic figures for the first time.

It all adds up to a target rich environment for hackers and cyber crooks.

As a citizen, you’re right to be alarmed at the relentless threat posed by cyber crime. But as a dispassionate investor, you should be salivating at the huge investment opportunities for long-term profits.

The global cyber security market is expected to hit $345 billion in annual sales by 2026. Below, I pinpoint an investment that’s poised to reap outsized spoils in the ceaseless war against cyber crime: ETFMG Prime Cyber Security ETF (HACK).

Madoffs lurk everywhere…

There’s been an epidemic of cyber crime and financial fraud and with it, the emergence of an industry to combat it.

Read This Story: Lessons Learned from the Bernie Madoff Swindle

It’s not just corporations and governments. Individuals are increasingly under assault by cyber crooks, in a variety of ways. See the following chart, released by the research firm Statista in September 2023, which depicts the most recently available data:

Fact is, in our fiber-optically connected world, in which reality is defined by certain permutations of 1s and 0s, cyber crime is a persistent and all-pervasive problem.

The U.S. continually accuses China of hack­ing the computer systems of American military and media organizations; South Korea is pointing the finger at North Korea for similar provocations; and large retail stores regularly report massive cyber breaches. U.S. financial institutions have reported sustained attacks from hackers located in Eastern Europe. The list goes on and on.

Through it all, Russian state-sanctioned hackers are persistently disrupting American elections, starting with the 2016 presidential general election and continuing into the 2020 and 2022 contests…and beyond.

Analysts predict that cyber crime will cost the world USD 10.5 trillion annually by 2025, in the form of fraud, theft, repairs, and loss.

In various speeches, President Biden has made the fight against cyber crime a national priority. Let’s look at a major beneficiary of the trend.

ETFMG Prime Cyber Security ETF

The perpetual fight against cyber crime is the sort of inexorable trend on which long-term investors should focus. If you’re concerned about market volatility as the new year beckons, there’s one investment that allows you to profit from the growing problem of cyber crime, with less risk: ETFMG Prime Cyber Security ETF.

Founded in November 2014, HACK is the world’s first cyber security ETF. The index tracks the performance of companies around the world that are direct service providers for cyber security.

With net assets of $1.41 billion, HACK seeks performance that generally mimics the price and yield performance of the ISE Cyber Security Index. The fund holds about 50 companies, most of which are based in the world’s technology leader, the United States.

HACK divides its holdings among those that design and sell cyber security hardware and software, and those that provide cyber security not as a product but as a continuing fee-for-service.

Here’s a snapshot of HACK’s top five holdings, all of which are the cream of the crop in cyber security:

HACK currently hovers well above its 50- and 200-day moving averages. When the price of a security or index rises above its moving averages, it indicates that recent average closing prices have surpassed historical averages. This implies strong upward momentum and sustained buying interest in the market

HACK has a reasonable expense ratio of 0.60%. This ETF is a safer and less volatile alternative for risk-averse investors.

PS: Among the publications that I edit is our premium trading service Utility Forecaster. My colleague Robert Rapier is the chief investment strategist.

As you position your portfolio for next year, turn to utilities stocks. The utilities sector has gotten clobbered lately by rising interest rates, but it’s poised to rebound when the Fed pivots in 2024. That means value plays are ready for the picking.

However, you need to pick the right ones. For our list of the highest-quality utilities stocks, click here now.

John Persinos is the editorial director of Investing Daily. You can reach John at: mailbag@investingdaily.com.

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