If you are a business owner whose business is something other than information technology or network security, cyber insurance may seem unnecessary. Network security may seem like something you can just hire someone else to worry about. If you have even a single computer that is used in the course of running your business, however, you are vulnerable to cyber losses, also known as data breach. This also holds true for anyone who creates products that contain a client’s sensitive data. And, if your client suffers a loss because you suffer an incursion, you can be responsible for making them whole.
Take the case of a web design firm who faced a $150,000 lawsuit when the site that they maintained for a bank was hacked. The bank was covered by a cyber insurance policy; however, the bank’s cyber insurer sued to recover their costs on the grounds that the design firm’s network permitted the breach . The bank’s cyber carrier claimed that the web design firm failed to protect against the intrusion. The web design firm had failed to patch software when needed, encrypt bank customer data and to install anti-malware protection that may have stopped the attack. Without the help of a cyber insurance policy of their own, a firm in the web designer’s position may find that they are on the hook for the costs themselves.
Cyber attacks are not limited to compromising sensitive personal data or payment card data. A recent spate of attacks harmed the infrastructure and critical operations of large scale manufacturers. In those state-sponsored attacks, the breach adversely affected the manufacturers’ automated operations systems and left them unable to run their businesses.
By choosing to insure your company against cyber threats, you can reduce the risk that an oversight could lead to significant losses. Talk to us today about how you can keep your company protected.
