A few weeks ago I blogged about my misfortune and loss of data when my cell phone was hacked and how that led me to think about the changes that many commercial entities may need when it comes to purchasing a proper insurance policy. To reiterate, in this day and age when much of the crucial data we use to run our daily businesses are kept on cell phones, computers, and mainframes, many businesses should re-evaluate their insurance policies to make sure that if a data loss occurs due to hacking, viruses, failed hardware or computer fraud that their subsequent loss of product inventory or business is covered by their insurance policy. Nowadays, there are so many data related issues that can impact a business. If data is lost or hacked, product orders can remain unfulfilled or private information of customers accessed can cause liability issues to arise. Businesses that are victims of computer fraud can even lose hundreds of thousands of dollars in product, when product is shipped from a fraudulent online order without proper payment.
In my search for the proper types of insurance policies many commercial entities may be looking for in this digital age, I found there is a specific type of insurance called "Cyber Insurance" available. Although cyber insurance policies have been available for about ten years, they continue to evolve, and the market for such policies is expanding. These policies have changed in nature and offer greater variety than they did when they first came onto the market. At this time there are more than twenty insurance carriers that underwrite cyber insurance policies according to the needs of the insured. With many exclusions and limits on coverage, it is crucial that the insured make an analysis of what their business actually needs and let the carrier know what specific kind of coverage is needed so the underwriters are well aware of what policy provisions are requested.
When it comes to cyber policies, insurers may cover many things such as the hiring of forensics, the cost of lost products, or the cost of call centers needed to notify customers, to name a few. Cyber fraud and fraudulent use of hacked data will continue to be a problem for business as our online world evolves and commercial business continues to gain strength via the internet. Commercial businesses can no longer function without technology that is vulnerable to fraud and attack, which in turn exposes these businesses to liability and the heightened propensity for a greater commercial loss. While the method of commercial business evolves with technology, many traditional general commercial insurance policies have not changed to meet the proper needs of most commercial insureds. Commercial businesses that rely and base their businesses on cyber technology and internet inquiries may wish to look to cyber insurance policies to supplement their existing coverage to bring them up to the digital age.
