Cyber Insurance Solutions for Businesses

Commercial policies only provide general protection for liabilities and crime whereas cyber insurance is specially designed to cover the growing list of threats and crimes in the virtual world. Not having it can leave your organizations with costly exposures. We are approaching a point where carrying cyber insurance is just as if not more important than carrying traditional insurance coverages like property and general liability insurance.

Here are a few ways cyber insurance goes beyond standard commercial policies to protect your organization:

• Cyber Liability vs. Standard Commercial General Liability

  If a third party brings a claim against your business due to sensitive information being accessed in the event of a network breach, standard commercial general liability will not respond to this claim. With cyber insurance, this is defended against under third party coverage.

• Cyber Crime vs. General Crime Coverage

  While many commercial policies provide small limits of crime coverage, most losses stemming from cyber crime go beyond these limits so general crime coverage would be unable to provide adequate response to the losses experienced. With cyber insurance, this is covered under cyber crime coverage.

• Cyber Security Features

  While most insurance products are reactionary in nature, insurers are now building additional cyber features into their policies that preemptively detect security threats as a means to prevent losses from occurring. Specialized cyber insurance coverage is needed to benefit from this.

When applying for cyber insurance coverage, insurers need to determine the likelihood of your organization experiencing a cyber loss, the expenses to potentially incur as a result of the loss, and any exposures to a suit brought forth by a third party.

To gauge your exposure to damages from a potential cyber loss, you will need to provide your FCA broker with your organization’s cyber security protocols, including firewall configuration, encrypted data requirements, and remote access procedures. From here, FCA will begin to put the right protection in place.

Cyber insurance threats don’t occur at clear and obvious times, a breach may be detected weeks or possibly months after it initially occurs. Immediately upon realizing or suspecting a breach has occurred, notify your FCA broker of the incident to make a claim.

Cyber insurance claims are handled by specialized insurance adjusters, the typical experience includes:

• Forensic investigation of your network to determine the source of the breach, as well as when it occurred
• Analysis of the threat to your business
• Procedures put in place to mitigate further losses stemming from the incident, and also to prevent a similar loss from reoccurring

Your FCA broker will walk you through the claims handling process to address any concerns you have along the way.

The cost of cyber insurance range depending on the types of products and coverage your organization is seeking. Premiums for cyber insurance can start as low as $175.00 for basic cyber extensions and exceed upwards of $10,000 contingent on the types of protection selected. An emerging trend is the option to purchase preventative cyber security services that can mitigate the potential of a loss occurring.

Insurers now offer a diverse range of cyber products and clients have the flexibility to customize their cyber coverage. Elements that will impact cost include:

• Limits of coverage selected (limits are the total amount of coverage available to you in the event of a loss. limits can range from as low as $25,000 to upwards of $10,000,000 or more)
• Types of protection selected (you can select First Party coverage only or a full package that includes First Party, Third Party, Cyber Crime and Business Interruption coverage)
• Sensitivity and volume of the data stored in your computer network

A knowledgeable broker is vital for an organization’s cyber protection as our expertise will ensure you understand your business’ cyber exposures, provide guidance on cyber safety procedures, and arrange the necessary coverage that will respond in the event of a loss.

Protecting our clients’ cyber security is a priority at FCA. To optimize your coverage we actively engage with cyber insurance specialist firms to ensure you are getting best in class support.  Establishing relationships with new companies, while enhancing existing relationships with longstanding insurance partners provides our clients with more choice, thereby providing the most ideal cyber products to suit your needs.