On Swisscybersecurity.net there is an interview with three providers of cyber insurance and one of them says (translated): “insurance already protects against a cyber incident”. Is that right? The answer is yes.
The reader’s first reaction upon seeing that claim will be to shake their head and mumble something about toilet duck. Anyone who reads further than just the headline may come to a different conclusion. Indeed, anyone who has cyber insurance already has an advantage when it comes to protection against harmful incidents.
How?
How does that work? So what kind of instant protection does insurance against digital damage offer? If you read the interview with the insurers you will see phrases such as “network, access to specialists” and much more. Strange, because forensic experts only come to the floor if there has been an incident. A network of crisis communication experts ditto.
Questions from insurers
You have to look elsewhere for the answer to that question, especially in another place in time. Whatever type of insurance you take out, questions are always asked in advance. If your answers are not in line with what the insurer expects, you cannot take out the insurance.
Anyone who wants to take out cyber insurance must be able to demonstrate that they have climbed a number of steps on the digital security ladder. Call it awareness, call it cyber hygiene, call it basics, if you have achieved that, insurers will dare to offer you a policy. Although this is not clear from the article, that is also the only valid basis for that claim.
Questions from suppliers and customers
As more and more customers and suppliers want to know how companies protect themselves against cyber incidents, the question also arises whether they are insured against cyber damage. These questions lead to more applications for cyber insurance, which in turn leads to more questions about the measures already taken.
So the claim is less strange than at first glance, it is true that insurance contributes to protection against a cyber incident.
