Common cyber security myths

A successful cyber attack can cause serious damage to your business, whether that’s an SME or a large corporation.  By Simon Roskell, compliance manager, Organic

It can affect your bottom line, as well as your business reputation and in turn significantly damage consumer trust. The impact of a security breach can be broadly divided into three categories; financial, reputational and legal.

Many companies are confused by how cyber insurance actually works and can be somewhat sceptical about arranging a suitable policy for their business.

Here we look at the myths around cyber insurance and ask the million dollar question: can your business afford not to have it?

Many companies believe that cyber is already covered by their current business insurance.

Unfortunately, traditional policies lack the depth of standalone cyber cover and won’t come with experienced cyber claims and incident response capabilities.

Another myth around cyber is that attacks only affect big businesses.

This couldn’t be further from the truth. Many cyber criminals target the most vulnerable companies not just the most valuable. In fact, a recent Verizon report found that 58 per cent of victims were categorised as small businesses.

Another common myth we often hear is that businesses believe they don’t require cyber insurance if they outsource their IT Security.

Though using a third party might change your risk exposure, it won’t eliminate it completely.

It’s likely that you’ll still be liable for any cyber breach and relying on claiming damages from a third party is risky. Having a specific cyber insurance policy in place, is crucial in the current climate of increased cyber attacks. Failing to have the relevant protection could prove detrimental to your business.