Businesses reducing cyber insurance as premiums sky rocket

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Sky-rocketing cyber insurance premiums are forcing some firms to reduce their cover.

Grant Thornton’s bi-annual business survey highlights the increasing frequency of scams and the unintended consequences.

Business advisory partner Greg Thompson said big insurance pay-outs have pushed premiums higher.

This had led firms to reassess their options and focus on steps they could take to reduce cyber breaches.

“When it comes up for renewal, people are finding a shock when the cost of the insurance is going up,” Thompson said.

“There’s a di minimis or an excess, where you go and say, ‘I’ll take care of that part of it myself’.”

“So maybe I take cyber insurance for the big attacks but I can protect myself by getting the up front processes right.”

Thompson said invoice fraud was also on the rise with scammers creating bogus bills in the name of regular suppliers.

Because these fake invoices looked familiar, they lured unsuspecting people to send their money to the scammers bank account.

But there were steps organisations could take to better protect themselves from breaches, such as having a phone conversation to confirm any new bank account numbers and email addresses.

“It’s important to take the time to establish a process for verifying any new details a vendor gives you, like bank account numbers and email addresses, and to always check information changes over the phone, rather than in an email,” Thompson said.

“Because all fraud involves a human element, employees should be trained to recognise common red flags such as unusual email addresses, grammatical errors, or unexpected changes in payment instructions.”

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