Do you forget your passwords often and try to recover them digitally? Beware of cyber threats and risks whenever you are doing anything online! Worldwide, the cybersecurity landscape is becoming more complex to manage. India tops the global average in weekly cyber attacks, according to a survey by Sophos, which covered around 3,000 respondents spanning 14 countries including India. The survey also indicates that India is fast evolving as a leading buyer of cyber covers, while South Africa tops the list with 98 per cent of its organisations opting for a cyber insurance cover, and then followed by Singapore at 97 per cent.
Why Insurers are concerned about Cyber Risk
For insurers across the globe, cyber risk is a growing concern they want to address effectively. A 2023 survey on Cyber Insurance powered by Intelligent Insurer highlights an interesting data point - 81 per cent of respondents indicated dissatisfaction with regard to the state of insureds’ cyber defence tools and 51 per cent of respondents rated the current state of cyber insurance market as ‘unsustainable’. At a time when cyber interconnectedness is soaring rapidly, these survey findings offer a dismal figure for insurers to contemplate.
Top Challenges Facing Cyber Insurance Market
To understand the challenges that global insurers are striving to solve, the Intelligent Insurer’s survey probes the most relevant pain points and it includes the following:
Systemic risk
Awareness of what cyber insurance is all about/market education
Lack of capacity, difficulty in placing risks, etc
Ransomware
Talent
Increase in premiums
Legal concerns
Policy wording
Dynamic underwriting requirements
Regulatory oversight
A more detailed understanding of percentage-wise allocation can be derived from the original survey findings of the Intelligent Insurer survey.
Rising Cyber Attacks Require Password Alternatives; Biometrics emerges a top trend
Another recent report from the 2023 Online Authentication Barometer offers key insights:
Manual password entry is the primary sign-in method for most digital use cases
Consumers opt to manually key in their digital passwords nearly four times every day
Passkeys have gained significant traction due to endorsements from Google and Apple
A whopping 70% of respondents opted for password recovery, thus highlighting the inconvenience this brings in smooth digital journeys
However, in financial services, biometrics surpass the popularity of passwords
How Insurers Strive to Counter Cyber Threats
Insurers recognise that the threat of a systemic cyber threat is real. A primary focus for most organisations is to make data-driven decisions that enhance their performance and outcomes.
Cyber intelligence, fuelled by large volumes of data generated through platforms, is fast evolving as a game changer. More importantly, mining cyber intelligence for insights will enable insurers to identify potential risks and challenges while gearing up to streamline processes and innovative solutions.
Summing up, as cyber threats continue to evolve, the insurance industry must remain at the forefront of agile and relevant innovations. Cross-sector collaborations can also be nurtured to address challenges and provide sustainable solutions to tackle this growing threat.
