What should Cyber Cover?
Report a ClaimThere are a lot of competing cyber insurance providers for you to choose from,but not all policies are created equal. It is difficult for non-technical insurance people to really understand what they should look for in a cyber insurance policy so we thought we would detail what we think every insurance policy should cover. As always, we keep these high level, but you should always refer back to the policy language to understand what is covered as various provisions may actually restrict your coverage.
WHAT A GOOD CYBER INSURANCE POLICY COVERS
Social Engineering Loss
Coverage for financial loss of misdirected payments which are transacted based on fraudulent instructions.
Restoration Costs
Coverage to recreate or restore data, software, or firmware which has been corrupted or damaged.
Computer Fraud
Coverage for financial losses caused by fraudulent use of computer systems or telephone systems.
Network Security Liability
Coverage for defense expenses, damages, fines, penalties, or sanctions to defend claims for failure to prevent cyber extortion, ransomware, cyber theft, or social engineering; or failure to prevent the transmission of hacker attacks, viruses, or denial of service attacks.
Extortion and Ransomware
Coverage to investigate, negotiate, and remediate ransomware threats and pay ransom demands, including bitcoins.
Bricking
Coverage to repair or replace computer hardware which has been rendered inoperable.
Public Relations Services
Coverage for PR campaigns, crisis response, media relations, and employee training after a data breach or ransomware threat.
Privacy Liability
Coverage for defense expenses, damages, fines, penalties, or sanctions to defend claims of unauthorized collection; unauthorized access; or breaches of personally identifiable information or confidential information.
Reputational Harm
Coverage for lost income caused by damage to a business’s reputation following a data breach or ransomware attack.
Business Interruption
Coverage for lost income because of a computer system disruption or an IT/telecommunications vendor’s system disruption.
Incident Response Services
Coverage to engage cyber incident response experts to investigate and remediate cyber-attacks, threats, disruptions, and data breaches
Multimedia Liability
Coverage for defense expenses, damages, fines, penalties, or sanctions to defend claims of copyright infringement; trademark infringement; defamation; libel; slander; infringement; or interference with the right to privacy.
Outsourced IT Providers
Believe it or not, some cyber policies only provide coverage for the equipment you own and use. But many small businesses outsource a large part of their IT to third parties. A good insurance policy will also cover third party providers and services.