Be Safe Not Sorry in Cyber-Security: Check Overconfidence at the Door
In light of some small signs of decrease in suspected cyber risk from 2021, a recent study from Beazley detects some signs that many business leaders from the U.S. and UK may be complacent or overconfident about their cyber security preparedness. Given that cyber risk was chosen as the top tech risk for businesses in 2022, it is important to remain cognizant of this risk, and continue to make steps in order to contain it as well. The study done by Beazly uncovered several important points related to cyber security which will be reflected below.
The obsolescence of technology is the number one cause of increasing tech risk as many companies are failing to keep up with the costs that accrue as updates for security improvement are expensive. This struggle to stay with costs is also causing a lack of resiliency as well including efforts of updating or replacing legacy systems. Of the risks listed in the report, the perceived risk of intellectual property has increased at a rate of 107 percent despite it being the lowest actual risk to companies. With increased perception of risk, 21 percent of companies are actually considering it to be the highest risk item when doing a personal analysis. In addition to differences in percentage of risk and perceived risk, insureds are becoming more selective about what risks are written to be covered. This often is found to give vulnerability to intangible assets forgotten due to this selectiveness.
At the end of the day, any company could be targeted and compromised by a cyber attack, so it is important for companies to stay attentive and carry out due diligence to stop a cyber attack. Especially for companies who have not sustained an attack in the past, it is important not to be overconfident, as gaps where attacks may be targeted could be missed due to a jaded perspective on the true situation of cyber security. It is also important to not forget to be covered and protect potentially more than expected as it is important to be fully protected and not simply scrape by and be at a higher risk for an attack.
References:
https://www.insurancejournal.com/news/national/2022/10/21/691152.htm