Cyber: protect your business and people
Our commercial cyber article examines the threat to brokers and provides insight into the psychology of attacks.
Following on from our hugely successful broker webinar on cyber security and how the latest threats can affect businesses, we thought it was important to share some further information with you as cyber crime and breaches continue to rise. Hopefully this update will aid your understanding and potentially help you manage the risks for you and your clients.
So, why are cyber criminals targeting brokers and smaller businesses?
Looking at our statistics, we know that cyber criminals targeting brokers and smaller businesses is on the rise, as cyber criminals are enhancing the sophistication of their techniques every day, looking to exploit any weaknesses for their own gain. According to our security experts, it’s very common for cyber criminals to attack smaller organisations to gain access to bigger businesses. This is because criminals know that these businesses are less likely to invest in modern cyber security and therefore they have lower levels of security to crack. When the cyber criminal has gained knowledge and access to the smaller organisation’s systems, it can then target connected suppliers or businesses as it has gained the vital information to do so.
We know that phishing is a commonly used method, but what is the psychology behind it?
In short – people and their emotions. Humans tend to be targeted more than systems to gain access into a business. Approximately 95% of cyber crime is due to human breaches (being tricked into giving up information or clicking a phishing link for example) so really – the biggest vulnerability we face is also our biggest and first unique selling point - our people.
Social engineering is the use of deception to manipulate individuals into divulging confidential or personal information that may be used for fraudulent purposes. Even though not all cyber criminals are experts in this, they do use emotions to get what they want.
Cyber threats will always exist and criminals are always looking for more sophisticated ways to target individuals within an organisation. Prevention is the best course of action and investing in cyber security training for all staff will reduce the risk of individuals falling for a phishing email.
Our cyber cover for businesses
At Covéa Insurance we are passionate about information security. Purchasing Cyber Insurance is a really good way of complementing good risk management and mitigating the risk of a cyber-attack. There are many benefits to having Cyber Insurance including:
- Protection from cyber risks which could be damaging to a business and its reputation, such as data recovery following system damage or full-scale data breach.
- Assistance in recovering from a cyber attack by providing the client access to a network of cyber professionals.
- Professional support to help businesses who are the victim of cyber- crime with the threat of damage to their computer system by virus, hacking or disclosing of data
Our mid-market Excel Business Combined policy provides optional cover for cyber risks which could be damaging to your client's business and their reputation. Your clients can choose 4 sections of cover that can be provided in 3 different combinations with limits from £25k up to £500k to ensure they get the right protection that they require for their business.
Costs of having an extortion threat verified as credible
We also offer a cyber cover option on our e-Trade Commercial Combined product. Our broad cyber cover is specifically designed for SME’s, offering real peace of mind for recovery of lost earnings and benefits include help with legal support, incident response and reputation management.
To find out more about our cyber cover, speak to you Regional Development Manager today or contact your local underwriting specialist.