Understanding Your Cyber Insurance Policy

Over the last few years, ransomware attacks have surged around the globe. The largest payout to date was made by a US-based travel company in July 2020, who surrendered a ransom of more than $4.5 million in cryptocurrency to a high-profile ransomware gang.

This rise in malware attacks has begun to affect how cyber insurance underwriters measure the risks associated with them. Insurers have started taking notice, even denying extortion coverage to companies that have not implemented multi-factor authentication (MFA) and endpoint detection and response (EDR). Furthermore, the cost of cyber insurance is rising for the same reasons.

How can your company protect itself from becoming an easy malware target and satisfy cyber insurance requirements? The first step is to review your cyber insurance policy in detail and address the following items:

• Do you have cyber insurance?
• Is it first-party and/or third-party coverage?
• Is the coverage retroactive?
• What are the coverage limits?
• What is or is not covered? Exclusions can be a major concern.
• Are there price breaks for implementing controls?
• Who owns the task of mitigation and what process must be followed if a breach occurs?
• Does your insurance provider understand your industry?

Additionally, it is imperative to evaluate and update all cybersecurity-related items regularly.

If you want to review your cybersecurity policy or discuss our cybersecurity solutions (including MFA and EDR), please contact Blake Griffin at 701-237-3433 or [email protected]. As an industry leader, Communications Network Engineering offers planning and funding, COE and OSP engineering, operations assistance, mapping/right-of-way/permitting and IT services. Their interactive approach with their clients results in the right solution for the application. Learn more at cnefargo.com.