Understanding the need for cyber insurance in today's world

The Internet has changed every aspect of how people live their lives. While it provides many benefits, numerous dangers also lurk on the web. Because of data breaches, information hacks and other hazards, cyber insurance came into being. If you have never thought about this type of insurance before, this is the time to consider it!

What is cyber insurance?

Many businesses purchase liability insurance to protect them from being sued by customers if something should happen during the normal course of doing business. Cyber insurance is one type of liability insurance designed specifically for hazards from the Internet.

One of the main issues where this insurance is useful is when a company's database is hacked, giving the criminals access to confidential and private information on customers. This includes names, addresses, and any other identifying information that would allow the hackers to steal identities.

Cyber insurance also protects companies from liability for printing anything online that could harm someone's reputation or be misconstrued with negative results. While restrictions are in place to prevent intentional harm, the goal is to protect the business from claims that could have expensive and serious repercussions.

In addition, this insurance helps pay for costs associated with a data breach. This includes the investigation and any remediation that is performed after the discovery.

Who needs cyber insurance?

Many people have never heard of cyber insurance. When they do hear the term, they associate it with financial organisations or other large retailers that suffer data breaches that make the news. Owners of small organisations may not see the need for coverage. They often believe that they are under the radar of hackers because they do not have as much information in their systems. However, many cyber criminals know that smaller organisations do not always have the same level of security in place. Because they are easier to access, many criminals actually choose to focus on small or "invisible" companies. These companies would sustain significant loss if a breach occurred. This would ruin a small organisation that doesn't have the resources to recover from an attack.

In a nutshell: Any organisation that stores personal and identifying information on customers or even employees would benefit from a cyber insurance policy. 

What cyber insurance does

Cyber insurance protects your organisation from negative consequences of being online. It can even provide special safeguards against hacking or viruses. It may offer reviews and other help in preventing attacks. When an attack does occur, having an insurance policy may allow you to hire extra staff to deal with repercussions and pay for legal fees. You may even receive reimbursement for income lost due to the situation.

Another aspect of this coverage that you may not be aware of is reputation management. If an attack does occur to a business, it can cause serious damage to the organisation's reputation in the eyes of the consumer and the public. A cyber insurance policy would pay for costs for public relations or special advertising to deal with the situation. In essence, it can help you rebuild your reputation after such an attack.

How much cover do I need?

As with many other insurance policies, each provider has multiple coverage levels. You have to decide how much coverage you need and what type. While cost is always a concern in purchasing insurance, you also have to consider the cost of an unfortunate situation and how much your organisation can stand to lose. Always have enough coverage in place to ensure that one breach or attack doesn't mean the end for the company. As more companies move to the Internet and hackers become more adept at infiltrating systems, the need for cyber insurance will continue to increase. Every business must protect itself for any situations that happen online or in the real world.

Other types of business insurance

No matter whether you're a small medium enterprise, or one of the big guys- every business needs protecting! From time-to-time unfortunate events occur at work that are out of your control; staff can get injured, websites may be hacked and businesses are sometimes sued. You can’t always predict a company calamity but you can be prepared for the unexpected. See what other types of business insurance are available to your business today!