In times of Covid, firms rush to get cybersecurity cover | Economic Times

Mumbai: India Inc is rushing to take cover from the risk of increased online security threats, with premium collections for cyber liability insurance expected to increase to ₹300 crore this year. Leading insurance companies have introduced identity theft, cyber bullying, malware intrusion and cyber extortion in their policies and said enquiries for cyber insurance have shot up 70% from March.“For the Indian insurance companies, the expected premium collection for next one year – as of May – stands at about ₹300 crore,” according to a General Insurance Council official who did not want to be identified. This compares with ₹100 crore collected as premium two years ago.Companies want insurance firms to cover malware theft, data breach, phishing attacks, identity theft and cyber bullying, among others, officials said.They said companies do not want their brand image dented while they juggle a new work culture and ensure the safety of client data. 76681208“A business in India would be outsourcing technology but reputational risk and loss of business can’t be outsourced,” said Milind Kolhe, chief underwriting officer at Bharti Axa General Insurance. “This forms the starting point of cyber liability insurance in India.”Bharti Axa recently introduced a cybersecurity product to help protect small and medium businesses against external cyber risks. Kolhe said that since Covid-19, enquiries have jumped 60-70%. ICICI Lombard has introduced a policy covering an individual from a range of attacks such as identity theft, cyber bullying, malware intrusion and cyber extortion.