Insurance for cyber risks | Key considerations

As mentioned in The Times today, our resident insurance guru and co-founder Ben Rose explains the complexities of insuring against cyber risks.

When designing cyber cover, insurers must take into account not only a business's liability to its customers, but also potential impacts on the business itself.

Ben advises, "While the client's customers may find their finances, IP or reputation under threat due to a leak of personal details or commercially sensitive information, the business itself also has to consider issues such as website downtime, loss of sales and long-term reputational damage. The cumulative cost of all these issues can make cyber insurance particularly complex."

Exposure is usually calculated on a per record cost, where for every record the client holds there is a cost based on all the aspects of the response plan required, such as notification costs, a customer service helpline, credit checks and IT forensics costs. As a result, specialist advice should be sought, to ensure you have the right level of protection to cover all eventualities.

As mentioned in