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As a business owner, you're likely familiar with the importance of protecting your company from cyber threats. Cyber insurance can provide financial protection in the event of a data breach or cyber attack, but it's essential to understand the differences between cyber insurance and crime insurance.
Cyber insurance specifically covers losses related to cyber attacks, such as data breaches, ransomware, and business interruption. For example, a recent study found that the average cost of a data breach is over $3.9 million, which is why cyber insurance can be a crucial investment for businesses.
Crime insurance, on the other hand, covers losses related to traditional crimes like theft, embezzlement, and forgery. According to the FBI, businesses lose an estimated $3 billion annually to employee theft alone. This highlights the importance of having crime insurance to protect against these types of losses.
By understanding the differences between cyber insurance and crime insurance, you can make informed decisions about which type of coverage is right for your business.
Worth a look: Cyber Insurance Data Breach
Cyber Insurance vs Crime Insurance
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Cyber insurance can pay for costs related to data breaches, such as notifying affected customers and offering credit monitoring services. This can be a significant expense, with some breaches costing companies millions of dollars.
Cyber insurance policies often have a lower deductible than crime insurance policies, making them more accessible to small businesses. For example, a cyber insurance policy may have a deductible of $5,000, while a crime insurance policy may have a deductible of $10,000.
Crime insurance, on the other hand, typically covers losses due to theft, embezzlement, or other crimes committed by employees or third parties. This type of insurance is often required by lenders or government agencies.
Cyber insurance can also cover business interruption costs, such as lost revenue and employee salaries, if a company is unable to operate due to a cyber attack. This can be a significant benefit, especially for small businesses that may not have a large cash reserve.
In contrast, crime insurance typically does not cover business interruption costs, and may only provide reimbursement for lost assets or property.
On a similar theme: What Does Cyber Insurance Not Cover
Choosing the Right Coverage
Choosing the right coverage is crucial to protecting your business from cyber threats. Cyber policies cover hardware failure and consequential damage to data, as well as first party exposures such as data cover, business interruption, and cyber extortion theft.
To determine the right coverage, consider your business's specific circumstances and the difference between Cyber and Crime insurance. Cyber policies do not provide cover for criminal activity, whereas Crime policies cover fraud caused by employees and third parties.
A Cyber policy can cover third party and first party losses, including indirect losses such as damages incurred by those connected to you. It can also cover the loss of intangible property, such as data files, proprietary formulas, and sensitive financial information.
In contrast, Cyber Crime insurance covers direct financial losses, such as the theft of money or data, and damage to computer systems. It may also cover the cost of business interruption if your business is unable to operate as a result of a cyberattack.
A fresh viewpoint: Is Driving without Insurance a Crime
Here are some key features to consider when choosing between Cyber and Crime insurance:
Ultimately, the best type of insurance for your business will depend on your specific needs and circumstances. Make sure to evaluate these protection options carefully to ensure you have the right coverage in place.
Understanding the Costs
The average cost of a ransomware attack on a company is a staggering $133,000, according to safeatlast.
This can include a wide array of recovery-related services, such as legal services, IT contractors, credit agency protection, and lost production and opportunity time for employees.
The high cost of ransomware attacks can be seen in the fact that they cost businesses more than $8 billion in the past year.
In one instance, a construction company client of Oswald's spent close to $75,000 to rebuild its database alone after a ransomware attack.
Here are some key statistics on the costs of ransomware attacks:
- Ransomware cost businesses more than $8 billion in the past year.
- The average cost of a ransomware attack on businesses is $133,000.
- The global spending on cybersecurity is over $14 billion.
- Ransomware is behind 56% of malware attacks.
Streamlining the Writing Process
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The Cyber IQ Platform from ProWriters makes the insurance process simpler than ever.
Navigating the complexities of cyber policies can be challenging, but ProWriters' platform streamlines the process of quoting and binding by allowing agents to compare quotes and policies from multiple cyber insurance companies.
Having one simple application for multiple carriers is a game-changer, eliminating the need for multiple applications and reducing administrative time.
A dynamic quote comparison document is provided with each submission, making it easy to compare policies side by side.
Brokers can also upload renewal lists for bulk quoting, further streamlining the process.
Custom Cyber Security Reports are available for each insured, helping brokers sell the coverage with ease.
Here are some of the features of the Cyber IQ Platform:
- One simple application for multiple carriers
- Dynamic quote comparison document with each submission
- Bulk quoting functionality for uploading renewal lists
- Custom Cyber Security Reports for each insured
Solutions and Options
To protect yourself from cyber risks, working with a company like Oswald to review your cyber and crime insurance coverages can be a good starting point. They offer a full suite of coverages for companies of all sizes.
Businesses should also perform regular audits of their antivirus and computer security software, and invest in employee training on how to avoid email phishing scams. This investment of resources and time can be significant, but can you afford not to act?
Cyber policies cover a range of exposures, including data cover, business interruption, and cyber extortion theft, but do not provide cover for criminal activity.
Check this out: Cyber Insurance Not Paying Out
Compare Companies Quickly
Comparing cyber insurance companies can be a daunting task, but it doesn't have to be. The U.S. Justice Department has posted a $5 million reward for information leading to the arrest of the head of cyber crime syndicate EvilCorp, which allegedly carried out cyber extortion attacks worth $100 million.
You can quickly and easily compare cyber insurance companies with the help of ProWriters, which has leveraged its insurance industry expertise to create tools and processes to make finding the right cyber policy easy.
A cyber attack can interrupt business, compromise vital data, and result in costly regulatory penalties or lawsuits, as seen with EvilCorp's victims.
Without cyber liability insurance, most victims of cyber attacks like those carried out by EvilCorp would struggle to cover the fallout costs.
The Oswald Solution
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The Oswald Solution offers a full suite of coverages for companies and budgets both big and small. This means that construction companies can find a solution that fits their needs.
Oswald helps review both cyber and crime insurance coverages to ensure protection. This is crucial for businesses that operate online and hold personal data on clients or employees.
Investing in employee training on how to avoid email phishing scams is also a must. This can be done by having internal IT staff or contractors perform an audit of their antivirus and computer security software.
The investment of resources and time can be significant, but can you afford not to act? Cyber policies cover hardware failure and consequential damage to data, including accidental data erasure or software corruption of breakdown.
Businesses should have a tailored Cyber policy that offers protection from first party exposures such as Data Cover, Business Interruption, Crisis Management and Cyber Extortion theft.
Discover more: Electronic Data Liability Coverage
Frequently Asked Questions
What cyber insurance does not cover?
Cyber insurance typically excludes issues caused by human error, negligence, or preventable mistakes, such as poor security processes or ineffective configuration management. This means that policyholders may not be covered for attacks that could have been prevented with proper security measures.
What is the difference between cyber security and cyber insurance?
Cyber security focuses on preventing and protecting against cyber threats, while cyber insurance helps mitigate the financial impact of incidents that breach these defenses. By understanding the difference, you can take a proactive approach to safeguarding your digital assets.
What does cyber insurance cover you for?
Cyber insurance covers losses from data destruction, hacking, extortion, and theft, as well as related legal expenses. Protect your business from cyber threats with comprehensive coverage.
Sources
- https://camargoinsurance.com/blog/the-rising-importance-of-cyber-crime-insurance-for-smes
- https://www.griffithsandarmour.com/knowledge-centre/cyber-and-crime-insurance-which-policy-does-my-organisation-need/
- https://www.oswaldcompanies.com/media-center/difference-between-cyber-insurance-and-cyber-crime/
- https://arnoutsins.com/blog/2023/08/cyber-liability-insurance-vs-cyber-crime-insurance
- https://prowritersins.com/cyber-insurance-blog/cyber-insurance-companies/
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