All of our businesses and organizations are now digitally reliant.  With that reliance comes inherent risk.  As with the automobile industry in the 1930s, it is becoming evident that insurance is essential to our protection so that we can operate through events that are out of our control.  Today’s events are driven by online crime and fraud that targets at will anyone of us or our companies.  This has been especially the case in Australia during the COVID-19 crisis, which has left many organisations more vulnerable to tireless state-sponsored hackers and other online criminals.

Whether it's a targeted attack against your business or opportunists taking advantage of weaknesses or human error in your organisation, cyberattacks are now among the most common and costly threats to businesses in today’s Digital Age. In Australia alone, security breaches cost the economy more than $1 billion every year (according to government estimates) and around 60% of affected businesses close within six months as a direct result of the breach.

Addressing your Cyber Risks is a one, two punch.  First, follow the best cyber resilience practices and standards for your Sector and second purchase one of the many affordable and now accessible cyber liability insurance policies.  You wouldn’t drive without it, why are you running a company without it?  It is not if you or your team are going to have a car accident or cyber event – it is when.  While making sure your key cyber risks are mitigated with cybersecurity practices and technologies that are robust and up to date will lower your risk considerably, as with driving you don’t control all eventualities.  We have learned to be prepared for the worst. Taking out an appropriate level of cyber liability coverage can cover the financial losses resulting from work disruption and response services, ensuring your business will continue to operate.

Who Needs Cyber Insurance Cover?

Companies of all sizes and across all sectors can benefit from cyber liability insurance. There's a dangerous misconception that only large organisations and governments are targeted by criminals, when in fact almost half of the Australian businesses affected by cybercrime are SMBs. Your data may be at risk whether it's stored on hard drives in your office or remote data centres accessed via the cloud.

No one is in-penetrable, Cyber liability insurance is a valuable second line of defence even if you have strong security protocols in place and having one doesn't mean you can go without the other. Both are necessary to make sure your business is as well defended as possible.

What's Included In Cyber Liability Coverage?

Cyber insurance is a relatively new type of insurance product and not yet standardised, so it's important to choose your provider carefully. Since general insurers are less likely to keep up to date with the latest security risks, choosing a specialist provider can be a safer choice.

Data breaches can be expensive, to the point that many businesses never recover. As well as direct financial losses resulting from business downtime or extortion, cybercrime insurance may also cover the costs of data restoration, reputational harm, regulatory fines and legal fees, among other expenses.

When choosing cyber insurance and security solutions, the ideal plans will be tailored to your specific needs. This involves identifying your vulnerabilities and knowing what type of breaches are most likely, so you can choose plans that match your risks.

Comprehensive Cyber Protection for Your Business

WhiteHawk Limited (ASX: WHK) a Barclay Pearce Capital client is the first global online cybersecurity exchange enabling businesses of all sizes with an online cyber risk consult, threat readiness questionnaire and scorecard, that is a precursor to discounted cyber liability coverage across 5 of the major global providers. 

WhiteHawk's next-generation risk monitoring and prioritization approaches, leverage publicly available data sets, Artificial Intelligence (AI) based analytics, online risk platforms and virtual consults that scale to mitigate a breadth of digital age risks in near real-time.  Their methods have been tested and evolved with government departments and fortune 500 companies.

Using machine learning and cyber know-how, any business can access their online and virtual service, to help you discover, learn, receive immediate online matches to top solutions, affordable products and services, or chat with smart cyber advisors in real-time, so you can own your cyber risk and success story, and purchase your cyber liability policy, knowing you are prepared for a breadth of cyber eventualities.

On Tuesday 28 July, 2020 Whitehawk announced it had won a five-year US government contract. The company has been contracted to implement its cyber risk monitoring software within the US federal government.

The market reacted positively to the news with the stock jumping as much as 65 per cent and traded positively, with shares hitting a high of 16 cents and closing at +70.2% up.

Read about this and other company highlights in their latest Quarterly Report

Terry Roberts is available for an interview. Contact Donna Warner, Barclay Pearce’s Chief Marketing Officer: donna@barclaypearce.com.au

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