With businesses relying more and more on technology for storing their private information each year, it may not come as a surprise that cyber attacks haveincreased steadily over the years as well. Because of this ever-present threat, it’s imperative that business owners invest in cyber liability insurance to ensure that their company’s data isn’t compromised.
According to Ponemon Institute’s2017 State of Cybersecurity in Small, Medium-Sized Businesses (SMB) report, 61% of small businesses experienced a cyber attack to some degree in 2017 compared to 55% in 2016. Moreover, only 21% of small businesses in this report rated their ability to mitigate cyber risks and attacks as highly effective. Small business owners may believe that their company is less likely to be targeted than a larger corporation, but this is not always the case due to their comparative lack of cybersecurity.
Any company that collects client information has a responsibility to protect that information from hackers. The same goes for employee information. Should this data be compromised, you may be held responsible to clients for financial losses, fines, costs to repair credit, and even future credit monitoring. These costs could quickly get into the millions of dollars and would sink most small businesses.Dueto this, cyber liability insurance is a vital investment to make for any company regardless of its size.
Here’s what cyber liability insurance (first-party or third-party) covers:
- Any legal fees directly resulting from a data breach
- Losses caused by damage, theft, or corruption of data
- Crisis management, or the money a company spends to repair their reputation
- Costs associated with notifying clients that there has been a breach
- Data recovery
- Forensic investigation of what caused the breach
- And more…
Cyber liability insurance coverage varies depending on the agency, so it’s important to discuss your business’ specific needs with your insurance provider. Some insurance agencies even have cyber liability policies that cater to specific industries. Regardless of your company’s size or specialty, data has shown time and time again that the benefits far outweigh the costs of cyber liability insurance. Since a massive data breach on a small business could completely sink the company, coverage for the costs of such a breach is a no-brainer.
Call Risk Averse Insurancein Media, PA to discuss your business or personal insurance.
Risk Averse Insurance is an insurance agency in Delaware County that specializes in providing high-quality insurance products at an affordable price.