Major data breaches at companies of all size are telling us one thing—that businesses are struggling to deal with the challenges of data protection. Sophisticated cyber attacks are on the rise and the simple truth is that many companies aren’t prepared. Whether you’re talking about upgrading security appliances, running penetration tests or adding staff, data protection costs money. But these days companies are finding themselves increasingly squeezed by skyrocketing cyber insurance premiums and deductibles.
How can you protect your data if you can’t afford to do what’s necessary? Learn the benefits of a cyber insurance plan and what is critical to have in your next policy.
Why Are Insurance Costs Through the Roof?
When you get into a car accident, who do you call? Among other people, your auto insurance agent must be near the top of the list. Even if you never get into trouble, there’s already a set premium you pay and deductible you’ll be required to pay. Policies are based on the amount of risk you as a crazy or steady driver represent to the insurance agent. As you get into more accidents, the risk rises and so does your premium.
Cyber insurance is no different!
For cyber insurers, offering breach coverage plans is a lot like gambling. There is a calculated risk involved and you have to pay to mitigate it. With data breaches happening in massive numbers, the risk is higher than ever and insurers are setting premiums and deductibles accordingly as a result.
Unfortunately, cyber insurance costs are getting so high that deploying a top-of-the-line security system while trying to pay for cyber insurance is enough to put many companies out of business. According to Tom Reagan of the Marsh & McLennan insurance company, “some companies are struggling to find the money to buy the coverage they want.”
Consider the recent Anthem data breach. The healthcare insurer’s cyber insurance renewal rates have been characterized as prohibitively expensive. They were covered for $100 million throughout the data breach recover process—but only after paying a $25 million deductible. Would your company be able to afford such a hit?
The Key to Affording Data Protection
There’s only one way to have even a chance of affording cyber insurance—and it’s a bit of a Catch-22. The only way to reduce your premium and deductible is to reduce your risk by proving you’re equipped to ward off malicious hackers. Are we saying you have to spend money on cyber security to avoid paying so much for cyber insurance? Not if you know what you need for data protection.
Here’s your cheat sheet of critical data protection needs that will prove to insurers that you aren’t a major risk—resulting in significantly lower insurance costs:
- Enforceable cyber and network usage policies
- Trained security and network professionals
- Test and certification/verification procedures
- A real data visibility plane—if you can’t see the threat, you can’t protect your network or data!
- Constant monitoring for attack strategies before the security border
- Recognition strategy for sensing a breach
- A post-breach mitigation procedure and program
- Corporate and board assistance and support (mostly monetary)
- Ongoing testing, visibility and education
- New customer acquisition strategies following a breach
Getting a Handle on Cyber Insurance Costs
Is all of this hacking and these large-scale data breaches just a passing fad? Definitely not. The rise in cyber crime will drive the cyber insurance market to over $7 billion in the coming years and insurers will be increasingly wary of ill-prepared companies. It’s time to get your security systems and strategies in check.
Even a small breach can result in crippling damages and fines. It’s time every company take cyber crime seriously, educate their departments and employees and set themselves up for favorable cyber insurance costs.
