When costs need cutting, the question on everybody’s lips is about what is and what is not required. But sometimes, decisions are made without gathering all the facts. A Disaster Recovery Plan and Business Continuity strategy is important upon deciding what is essential for your business. In previous years, one thing that has often been discarded is Cyber Insurance. It’s a bit like when you’ve lost your phone; just because it has never been stolen or smashed doesn’t mean it will never happen, and when it does happen, you will wish you had insurance! The same can be said if you are a business operating without Cyber Insurance; you are constantly walking a tightrope.
What is Cyber Insurance?
For any business looking to cover itself from being a victim of cyber criminals or data leaks, Cyber Insurance should be considered. Initially, insurance firms would cover the cost of ransom, recovery, incident management and even reputation repair. However, this now comes at a premium and is often as optional extras.
Cyber Insurance is something an organisation uses to resort back to if the company is subject to a compromise. This allows for the incident response teams to come in and get the organisation functioning. It will also cover things like ransom payment, although this tends to be an optional extra and will carry an additional premium. Implementation of Cyber Insurance has become as essential as Health & Safety insurance due to the complex nature of attacks and the impact they can have on businesses.
Where can you get protected from cyber attacks?
The process that needs to be followed to get Cyber Insurance has changed drastically over the last few years and has become a lot more challenging. Organisations must show a willingness to implement basic Cyber Hygiene even to be able to get quotes. This is due to the adaption of cyber threats and attack styles which have caused insurers to pay out. These common attacks vectors now must be blocked and technical controls put in place to prevent exploitation.
The higher-end insurance firms will cover larger businesses, as larger organisations have measures in place for cyber security and have covered a lot of common attack types. However, anyone applying for Cyber Insurance must have almost impenetrable network security to get any policies and be covered. It is interesting to learn about what exactly it is businesses can be protected against in the cyber world.
Privacy Breaches and Network Security Infiltration
Businesses can be covered against privacy breaches. That means that companies and organisations are covered against loss of income and costs which result from the work required when responding to a violation. Plus, a company can get covered if there are any network security or privacy breaches (read more about network security from Neuways). Effectively you can claim if there are any security breaches when someone infiltrates your organisation’s network.
Scams and payment duplication
If you are running an online retail business or a website requiring users to make transactions and share their contact details, you are likely to need Cyber Insurance. This is because hackers have been known to infiltrate networks and gain access to private data. Plus, there have been instances of websites operating with malware which allows hackers to duplicate people’s payment cards. This is a common scam and is not always the fault of the business hosting the transactions. Insurance firms cover companies for defence costs for regulatory proceedings and even PCI DSS payments. (This is the global standard related to the security of payment card data).
Systems and servers failing
This is a big one! Sometimes companies will experience their website going down due to a malfunctioning server, expected downtime or even DDoS attack. Whilst most downtime will occur during scheduled times for maintenance when you operate in the cyber-verse, unexpected system failures will mean your business will lose money. Fortunately, if this does happen, some insurance companies will cover your business against such failures and downtime. We think this Cyber Insurance product is essential because a system failure can permanently deter a customer. If they try to access your website or portal and it is down, a customer could assume that the business doesn’t exist anymore, and they are unlikely to return. This could result in a loss of instant income but also future income. So, it is vital that, if possible, you can get protected against these sorts of shortcomings.
Other benefits beyond Cyber Insurance
There are other benefits beyond Cyber Insurance, which we have not even mentioned yet. However, our team would love to talk you through them!
What we are trying to emphasise is that the effects of your website being hacked, or servers going down, can be catastrophic. Not only does it result in lost income, but your brand reputation can also be affected, and the high costs that come from you paying out a ransom could leave your business at the point of no return.
Become Cybersafe
Of course, one way to limit paying out on insurance premiums which can get quite expensive (and are time-consuming just to get), is to ensure your business adopts a cyber security framework. Neuways can help you to get as cyber secure as you can be. As cyber criminals are constantly looking to adapt their methods and evolve, your security consultants and team need to adapt with them. Luckily that is exactly what we do.
As we mentioned, one mishap, whether a cloned card or a system failure, can put off potential customers, both now and in the future. However, if you partner with a cyber security firm committed to being cybersafe, that adds a lot of trust to your business and peace of mind for your customers. In addition, for any business owner, IT team, or even Managing Director, knowing that your business is cybersafe can mean you can switch off after work, knowing your security is in safe hands.
