In the current digital environment, where cyberthreats are commonplace, it makes perfect sense to have cyber liability insurance. However, just having a policy in place doesn’t guarantee a smooth claims process.

Cyber insurance policies come with varying terms and coverage, requiring meticulous examination of inclusions and exclusions and deciphering technical jargon. Having a thorough understanding of your policy sets realistic expectations and prepares you to handle potential cyber incidents with confidence.

This blog aims to help you get the most out of your cyber liability insurance. Keep reading to learn more.

Mastering Your Cyber Insurance Claims

Here are some key steps to optimize your coverage:

Thorough Policy Understanding

Delve into the nuances of your policy. Scrutinize terms, conditions and coverage limits. Identifying inclusions and exclusions aligns your expectations effectively, empowering you to grasp the extent of protection offered.

Precision in Application

Accuracy is paramount when applying for cyber insurance. Detailed and precise information regarding your organization’s cybersecurity measures, risk management practices and past incidents or breaches aids insurers in evaluating your risk profile accurately.

Documentation of Security Measures

Maintaining comprehensive records of cybersecurity measures, policies, procedures and incident responses becomes crucial evidence during the claims process. These records showcase proactive steps taken to mitigate cyber-risks.

Timely Incident Reporting

Immediate reporting of cyber incidents or potential claims to your insurer as per policy requirements is essential. Swift notification initiates the claims early, allowing for a prompt investigation — a critical aspect of a successful claims process.

Detailed Loss Documentation

Comprehensive documentation and quantification of financial losses incurred due to cyber incidents are vital. Including costs related to business interruption, data restoration, legal fees and other expenses supports your claim’s accuracy.

Cooperation with the Insurer’s Investigations

Full cooperation with the insurer’s investigation, providing requested information, interviews and access to systems and records, is imperative. Failure to cooperate might lead to claim delays or denials.

Regular Policy Review

Consistent review of your cyber insurance policy is crucial. Align it with evolving business needs and changing cyber risk landscapes. This step allows necessary adjustments to coverage, endorsements or additional coverages matching your risk profile.

Enhancing Cybersecurity Practices

Continuously improve cybersecurity measures based on industry standards. Regular assessments to identify and mitigate vulnerabilities showcase a proactive approach, potentially influencing positive claim outcomes.

Databranch stresses the importance of conducting vulnerability assessments regularly, at least every quarter if not more frequently. This is due to the dynamic nature of information technology. Many changes occur on a day-to-day basis that can introduce new exposures associated with information security.

Security shortcomings found during a vulnerability assessment can almost always be fixed. Many times, the fixes are very easy to accomplish. 

Expert Consultation

Seeking guidance from insurance professionals, legal counsel and specialized IT service providers offers invaluable insights. Their advice aids in optimizing coverage and effectively navigating the claims process.

Databranch can help your business implement many of the pre-requisites for a cyber insurance policy, such as performing vulnerability assessments, enabling MFA, restricting administrative privileges, and even installing a data backup and recovery solution.

Ensuring a Successful Payout

While obtaining cyber insurance is vital, maneuvering the claims process for a successful payout is equally essential. Our seasoned experts specialize in cyber insurance claims and understand policy nuances and claim procedures.

With extensive experience, we’ve successfully guided numerous businesses through complexities, offering tailored strategies to enhance claim success. Reach out to Databranch today at 716-373-4467 option 6, or [email protected] to schedule a no-obligation consultation to optimize your cyber insurance coverage and fortify your business against cyber incidents effectively.

Download our infographic today for more information on cyber insurance claims and why yours may be denied.

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Is your business prepared to confront today’s growing cybersecurity threats?

Although adopting the latest technologies and industry trends is undoubtedly crucial, it is equally important to ensure that your business has the best cyber liability insurance. Think of it as an invisible shield protecting your business from devastating losses. However, to harness its full potential and ensure robust protection, it is critical to have a nuanced understanding of it.

In this blog, we’ll delve into the key considerations when shopping for cyber liability insurance. But before we do that, let’s first understand the difference between first-party coverage and third-party coverage.

First-Party Coverage vs. Third-Party Coverage

Every business today needs cyber liability insurance. To help businesses quickly respond and recover from data breaches, insurance providers have developed two types of cyber liability insurance – first-party coverage and third-party coverage.

Here’s how they differ:

1. Focus of Coverage

First-party coverage:

• Shields the insured business
• Protects against direct losses and expenses resulting from a data breach

Third-party coverage:

• Focuses on liabilities from third parties
• Covers claims made by third parties who suffered losses because of the insured business’s cyber incident

2. Costs Covered

First-party coverage:

• Covers only the insured’s direct costs
• Pays for revenue loss, forensic investigations, data restoration, public relations and customer notification services

Third-party coverage:

• Pays for businesses’ legal expenses
• Covers cyber-related liabilities, such as data breaches, privacy violations and defamation

3. Reputation Management

First-party coverage:

• Pays for expenses related to hiring public relations firms
• Aims to restore the brand image of a business after a cyber incident

Third-party coverage:

• Primarily focused on handling the legal aspects
• More concerned with defending against claims and settling third-party disputes

4. Beneficiaries of Coverage

First-party coverage:

• Directly benefits the insurer
• Provides direct protection to the insured party against direct losses

Third-party coverage:

• Benefits third parties, such as a business’s customers, clients and business partners
• Provides direct protection to those affected by a data breach suffered by the insured business

Key Things to Consider While Shopping for a Policy

Here are some key points to consider when shopping for a cyber liability insurance policy:

Coverage

Comprehensive coverage is key to reducing the impact of a cyber incident. Your business can become the victim of a data breach or a large-scale cyberattack at any time. That’s why it’s crucial to ensure that the policy addresses cyber-risks specific to your business.

Limits

Evaluate the policy to understand the coverage limits. The policy that you finalize should be able to handle the potential costs associated with a cyberattack, including legal fees, data recovery and business interruption expenses.

Exclusions

Study the policy outlines to understand what is excluded. Any limitations in your policy can make your business vulnerable. That’s why it’s crucial to know what is not covered by your insurance.

Incident Response

Make sure that the policy has provisions for developing and implementing a cyber incident response plan tailored to suit your business. Without a well-defined response plan, you won’t be able to effectively respond to a cyber incident.

Here at Databranch, our managed clients receive expert guidance if a cyber incident were to occur at their business. This includes device isolation through our software tool stack, immediate assistance from an engineer, and guidance if you have questions while submitting your insurance claim.

Price

Before finalizing a policy, compare and cross-check various policies, especially their costs and unique offerings. Although opting for the most affordable option can be tempting, it is crucial to ensure that the coverage you choose is best suited for your business needs.

Reputation

It is also important to do your due diligence and research the insurance company’s reputation. Look for an insurer with a good reputation and positive customer feedback. Choose a company that settles claims promptly, as that is a reliable indicator of the level of support you can expect when you need it.

Build a Resilient Future

Finding the right cyber liability insurance coverage for your business can be daunting. However, it can be even more challenging to get a payout when you need it the most. That’s where Databranch comes in.

We can help you improve your chances of securing coverage. Reach out to Databranch today at 716-373-4467 option 6, or [email protected], and let’s build a resilient future together. You can also download our checklist below which summarizes these essential steps when buying cyber insurance. 

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Cybersecurity insurance is still a pretty new concept for many SMBs. It was initially introduced in the 1990s to provide coverage for large enterprises. It covered things like data processing errors and online media.

Since that time, the policies for this type of liability coverage have changed. Today’s cyber insurance policies cover the typical costs of a data breach. Including remediating a malware infection or compromised account.

Cybersecurity insurance policies will cover the costs for things like:

• Recovering compromised data
• Repairing computer systems
• Notifying customers about a data breach
• Providing personal identity monitoring
• IT forensics to investigate the breach
• Legal expenses
• Ransomware payments

Data breach volume and costs continue to rise. 2021 set a record for the most recorded data breaches on record. And in the first quarter of 2022, breaches were up 14% over the prior year.

No one is safe. Even small businesses find they are targets. They often have more to lose than larger enterprises as well. About 60% of small businesses close down within 6 months of a cyber incident.

The increase in online danger and rising costs of a breach have led to changes in this type of insurance. The cybersecurity insurance industry is ever evolving and businesses need to keep up with these trends to ensure they can stay protected.

Here are some of the cyber liability insurance trends you need to know about.

Demand is Going Up

The average cost of a data breach is currently $4.35 million (global average). In the U.S., it’s more than double that, at $9.44 million. As these costs continue to balloon, so does the demand for cybersecurity insurance.

Companies of all types are realizing that cyber insurance is critical. It’s as important as their business liability insurance. Without that protection, they can easily go under in the case of a single data breach.

With demand increasing, look for more availability of cybersecurity insurance. This also means more policy options, which is good for those seeking coverage.

Premiums are Increasing

With the increase in cyberattacks has come an increase in insurance payouts. Insurance companies are increasing premiums to keep up. In 2021, cyber insurance premiums rose by a staggering 74%. 

The costs from lawsuits, ransomware payouts, and other remediation have driven this increase. Insurance carriers aren’t willing to lose money on cybersecurity policies. Thus, those policies are getting more expensive. This is at the same time as they are more necessary.

Certain Coverages are Being Dropped

Certain types of coverage are getting more difficult to find. For example, some insurance carriers are dropping coverage for “nation-state” attacks. These are attacks that come from a government. Many governments have ties to known hacking groups. So, a ransomware attack that hits consumers and businesses can very well be in this category.

In 2021, 21% of nation-state attacks targeted consumers, and 79% targeted enterprises. So, if you see that an insurance policy excludes these types of attacks, be very wary.

Another type of attack payout that is being dropped from some policies is ransomware. Between Q1 and Q2 of 2022, ransomware attacks increased by 24%.

Insurance carriers are tired of unsecured clients relying on them to pay the ransom, so many are excluding ransomware payouts from policies. This puts a bigger burden on organizations. They need to ensure their backup and recovery strategy is well planned.

If a cybersecurity incident occurs, does your business have a recovery plan? If not, reach out to Databranch today to get started.

It’s Harder to Qualify

Just because you want cybersecurity insurance, doesn’t mean you’ll qualify for it. Qualifications are becoming stiffer. Insurance carriers aren’t willing to take chances. Especially on companies with poor cyber hygiene.

Some of the factors that insurance carriers look at include:

• Network security
• Use of things like multi-factor authentication
• BYOD and device security policies
• Advanced threat protection
• Automated security processes
• Backup and recovery strategy
• Administrative access to systems
• Anti-phishing tactics
• Employee security training

You’ll often need to fill out a lengthy questionnaire when applying for insurance. This includes several questions about your cybersecurity situation. It’s a good idea to have your IT provider help you with this.

This can seem like a lot of work that you have to do to qualify for cyber insurance. As you review the questions, your IT partner can identify security enhancements. Just like other forms of insurance, if you take steps to reduce risk, it can often reduce your premiums.

So, it pays to do a cybersecurity review before applying for cyber insurance. You can save yourself time and money. It can also fortify your defenses against cyberattacks.

Need Help Making Sense of Cybersecurity Policies?

Cybersecurity coverage and insurance applications can be complex. If you answer wrong on a question, it can mean paying hundreds more in premiums than you should. If you’re considering cybersecurity insurance, don’t go it alone. Contact us today at 716-373-4467 x 115 or [email protected], we can explain the policy details and provide guidance.

Article used with permission from The Technology Press.

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