How Does Cyber Insurance Secure You Against Cyber Attacks?

In May, the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (Cert-In) forwarded an advisory to the national and regional agencies, warning them about the increment in the number of phishing attacks. This advisory was in response to a 3x to 4x increase in the instances of cybercrime in the country, especially during the lockdown. Inferring these two instances, you can well imagine that the menace of criminality with the web is on a surge in the nation. Cyber attacks happen daily, affecting everyone from a common man to organizations, banks, and the national government. Taking the lead from these anti-social activities, it is imperative for everyone who has access to the internet and uses a smart device, to be secure. Around 31.7% of the population in India has a smartphone. Even though the nodal agencies like Cert-In are fighting against the cyber threat, we also have a responsibility to fight it on our turf, with cyber insurance.

Importance of Cyber Insurance

Any general liability insurance policy will not cover cybercrime, so you must get a dedicated cyber insurance policy to shield yourself from the consequences of a cyber attack. Cyber threats are indifferent, and they won’t look at the flashiness of a product before hacking. This means that if you think that having a dull website and are not so famous or do not have a lot of money, you are not in the circle of risk, then you are wrong. Moreover, a cyber attack on an individual might have different consequences than the effects on an organization. Let’s understand why cyber insurance in India is essential for both types of entities.

Importance of insurance for an Individual:

Half of the time, we live on the internet and surf the web for all sorts of information. A significant amount of personal and generic detail of our lives is present on the web. Be it social media profiles brimming with the photos and videos or other applications that have access to our phone files, documents, and contact list your smartphone is connected with bank accounts and other financial applications. Even a single breach or cyber attack in any one of the accounts can open the gateways of all the other accounts for the hacker. Where connectivity has made our life easier, it brings a different set of complexities. Getting a cyber insurance policy is a useful tool in your hands to safeguard finances and savings from going down the drain. As an individual, you are also susceptible to various types of cybercrime such as stalking, identity theft, and doctored cyber attacks targeted to defame or spoil your public image.

Cyber Insurance for Organizations and Businesses

Before moving ahead, please understand that “it is not a matter of IF but only a WHEN.” The worst part about dealing with cybercrime is that you might not even know who was the attacker, whom shall you blame for this attack, yourself, or the attacker? The potential loss of a cyber attack on an organization is more destructive to an organization than an individual. Plus, it is not just the monetary loss that they have to deal with due to the attack; it is the post-attack reformation and damage control charges that blow a big hole in their pockets. So, a cyber insurance policy is drafted to cover the overhead costs of the money stolen from the account. Added to this, it must also cover the expenses incurred to restore the systems, protect the brand, rebuild the brand, and conduct a detailed analysis to find the loopholes. More importantly, a cyber insurance policy can protect you from the punitive damages, but it cannot predict a cyber threat prematurely. Any insurance provider dealing with cyber threats and attacks can help ensure cybersecurity preparedness, but not detect it. So, as an individual and as an organization, focus on cybersecurity readiness while looking at a good and efficient cyber insurance policy.

What Should You Consider While Buying Cyber Insurance?

You cannot possibly overlook the benefits of cyber insurance in hyper-connected world. India, there aren’t many insurance providers who cover cyber threats. Irrespective of this fact, you must understand the intricacies of getting an insurance policy. So, here are a few things to keep in mind:

• Cyber insurance coverage: What is the coverage area of the insurance policy, or what all do they cover? Because dealing with a cybercrime does not come cheap. You need specialists to understand how the whole cyber game works is not cut and dried for everybody. And specialists cost more.
• Do they provide brand rebuilding and protecting the interests of the businesses’ customers and clients affected by the breach?
• Will the policy cover legal fees, consultation charges, and damage control expenses?
• Does the policy cover the extortion amount in case of a ransomware attack?
• Will the policy pay for the media coverage and the procedures arising out of the media liability attack? Plus, will the policy cover the costs to compensate for the unintended media publications.
• As an individual, will you get cover for phishing, spoofing, wallet hacking, bank account hacking, cyber threat, and other types of IT theft?

After getting the answers to these questions, you can decide whether to go with a particular cyber insurance policy or not.

Can I Buy Cyber Insurance Online?

Yes, the insurance providers who proffer coverage in case of cyber attacks offer a quotation customized to your specific needs and requirements from the policy. All you have to do is fill in the online form and select the options that apply in your case, and you will receive the total coverage cost and premium. *Standard T&C apply. Insurance is the subject matter of solicitation. For more details on benefits, exclusions, limitations, terms, and conditions, please read the sales brochure/policy wording carefully before concluding a sale.