Reassessing Your Policy: Tips for Commercial Insurance Holders

If you own or operate a small business and rely on the Internet to any degree, you should be aware of the potential risks. No matter how small the company is, you may still be responsible for cyber security and should realise that you may be affected by legislation. How can you protect yourself, and should you modify your insurance coverage moving forward?

Understanding The Risks To Your Business

For some years now, Australian regulators have been beefing up cyber security laws, and today, owners or directors can be held personally responsible for a cyber breach. Should third-party data and customer information be compromised due to a hacking incident, the regulators will take a dim view, which could open your business to prosecution and fines. Also, you could stand to lose your good reputation if these matters are made public. In this case, customers may not be as willing to trade with you any longer if they think they may be opening themselves open to risk.

Dealing With The Growing Threat

Cyber attacks come in many different forms. Some bad actors will simply want to hack into your system to cause disruption for no real reason. Others may infect your system and hold it hostage while they demand a ransom to put things right.

What Are The Costs Associated With A Cyber Attack?

You can face many risks associated with a cyber attack. As such, you may suffer some real financial damage as you deal with the incident and take time to recover. For example, you might lose data or money and have to spend more to implement follow-up measures. You may need to pay your staff extra as they try to catch up or give them compensation if they cannot work due to business downtime.

Understanding The Needs For Cyber Protection

Cyber insurance policies can take a lot of the heat off in these situations. Remember, these policies will need to be in place alongside any measures that you take to protect your organisation. They are meant to activate should you suffer from a cyber security incident, and can certainly give you peace of mind in this scenario.

Levels Of Protection

Insurance may cover losses in-house due to business interruption or the cost of repairing software or hardware. It may also help with your legal liability for any damages or costs associated with a claim. Such a claim could come from customers or regulatory bodies if they deem that you have been negligent.

Getting Your Protection

Talk with a business insurance broker today to ensure you are protected against the growing threat of cyber attacks.