ISSUING CYBERSECURITY MEASURES FOR BUSINESSES

Cybercrime hasn’t happened to us, so why should we invest in insurance coverage?

CYBER LIABILITY INSURANCE

Just because you haven’t been a victim of data breach doesn’t mean that you are immune to a cyber attack. In reality, cybercrime has risen to the No. 1 threat to business existence for the second year in a row. Consider the depth of this statistic: the No. 1 threat to a business staying open to customers isn’t fire, general liability loss, auto loss, or workers’ compensation loss. Instead, it resides in the reputational destruction, future viability damage, and loss of customer confidence as a result of pesky cyber thieves.

Today, more than 90 percent of businesses with under $100 million in revenue, including those located in Iowa, have not purchased cyber liability protection. However, each day we’re working to spread awareness on the value of this essential coverage, translating education into long-term protection. At Densmore Insurance Strategies. Inc., we specialize in securing cyber liability insurance for our clients, in Iowa as well as a selection of other states. The best time to purchase insurance is before a loss – after the fire, it’s too late. Take our advice, and get on board with cybersecurity protection.

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What is Cyber Liability Insurance?

The state of Iowa has passed legislation on handling cyber breach or intrusion after it occurs; however, to date, there are no regulations that require cyber liability insurance coverage. Clearly, this lack of legislation doesn’t mirror the importance of this coverage.

At Densmore Insurance, our agents are informed, committed to remaining on the forefront of protection, and are passionate about gathering information on the topic of cybersecurity and sharing this knowledge with our Iowa neighbors. As an independent insurance agency, we have the ability to focus on the individual needs of each client. We take this opportunity to heart, learning the ins and outs of your business practices. Agents take time to communicate the availability of offerings within our business insurance program, including cyber liability insurance. Once a client’s needs are determined, we’ll follow through by matching requirements with insurance products from our collection of renowned carriers.

For many of our competitors, the purchasing process for cyber liability insurance includes a lengthy application and extensive warranty statements. This method is designed to narrow coverage triggers in the event of a claim. In addition, many policies carry a sublimit for expenses, which can cause complications in the event of a claim.

Instead, our agency operates in a different fashion by implementing a streamlined process with an online application. This allows clients to secure comprehensive cybersecurity coverage in just a matter of minutes. Think of it as less time handling insurance, paired with more productive time invested in your business.

Through our cyber liability insurance program, we can secure a selection of coverages, including:

• Cyber Breach or Intrusion
• Protection against unauthorized release of PII, PHI, corporate financial information, as well as violations of a person’s right to privacy, publicity, etc.
• Regulatory Claims-Legal Defense – resulting in fines/penalties from a regulatory claim (federal, state, local, or foreign statute or regulations)
• First and Third Party Coverage – personal or non-public information of customers or employees
• Security Wrongful Acts
• Multimedia Liability
• Ransomware (cyber extortion)
• Business Income and Digital Asset Restoration
• PCI-DSS Assessment
• 24/7 Claims Hotline

Experienced Agents Tuned into Cyber Protection

Despite the danger, it poses, cybercrime is excluded from most traditional policies. Limited coverage can be endorsed with general liability coverage, crime insurance, and some directors and officers (D&O) policies. However, these forms of coverage are not intended to respond to modern threats posed in today’s 24/7 spread of information.

As a business local to Bondurant, Iowa, we can relate to the fear of unfortunate cyber scenarios. This fear, however, cannot translate into inaction. Being proactive is essential to reducing the risk of your business being shouldered with devastating financial burdens.

Densmore Insurance Strategies, together with NetDiligence® Solutions, offers cybersecurity coverages and services to small business owners. NetDiligence is an award-winning provider of innovative cyber risk management solutions.

Our services and solutions are designed for corporate risk managers, cyber liability insurers and attorneys who specialize in data security and privacy.

• Cyber Risk Assessments, which You can’t prepare for a threat you never saw coming. Risk management begins with an unflinching look at your cyber security strengths and weaknesses. NetDiligence QuietAudit® Cyber Risk Assessments guarantee clients a fully developed, enterprise-wide picture of their cybersecurity posture and risk readiness. Through the assessment process, we document what’s working and what’s not, providing a critical starting point for risk mitigation, while giving insurers the confidence they need to underwrite your organization.
• CyberHealth Check is a quick, efficient e-risk examination conducted via a survey. We begin by gathering information and conducting an audit of existing materials. The next step is a Client IT Security Phone Interview in which our specially designed questions help measure your organization’s key practices against ISO 27002 security standards and current threat vectors.
• CFO Cyber Risk Assessment offers a more in-depth solution, combining the Cyber Health Check with an independent review of security and privacy practices conducted by peers. This solution also includes a remote vulnerability scan of perimeter network devices such as web and email servers, firewalls and more to ensure they are properly guarded against outside attacks. Up to eight systems can be tested. A CFO Summary Report benchmarks client practices against industry standards, notes weak spots and makes recommendations for improving security safeguards.

Network Vulnerability Scan Testing digs deep, scanning your entire network, including firewalls and web servers, for areas of weakness. NetDiligence’s Scan Testing tool can identify more than 6000 potential vulnerabilities more commonly used by hackers, including misconfigured, unpatched, or unhardened externally facing network servers and devices. Probes can detect whether an attacker can gain unauthorized access, create a denial of service or gain sensitive data from the network. A concise Summary Report details the findings and offers critical fix recommendations to remediate any uncovered vulnerabilities and help close up the gaps before a malicious actor finds them.

Our agents would be happy to discuss cyber liability coverage options with you and your business associates. Contact our agency for your inconvenience, or feel free to request a quote.

Additional Resources:

• Information Regarding Cyber Liability Insurance (Insurance Information Institute (III))
• Cybersecurity Risk and Risk Management (National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC))
• Cyber Liability Insurance Defined (The International Risk Management Institute (IRMI))
• Cyber Liability Insurance Company in Des Moines, Iowa
• How to protect your company against the latest social engineering scams 
• How to Protect Your Social Security Number NOW 
• Cloud Security Terms You Must Include in Your Contract 
• 5 Steps to Mitigate Your Cyber Healthcare Risks 
• Follow These 20 Password Policy Best Practices to Keep Your Company Secure