As Cyberattacks Rise, 2015 Looks Very Bleak: A Brief on Cyber-

insurance

2013-2014: Christmas Season for Cyber Attacks

• In 2013, hackers pulled off what is known as one of the biggest data breaches in history.

They infiltrated Target's point-of-sale (POS) terminals and stole more than 70 million

credit/debit card numbers.

• Till date, about 20 major U.S. retailers have fallen victims to data breaches. On the whole,

there had been 679 security breaches spanning across various industries.

• About 288 cyber incidents were reported in the medical/healthcare industry, while 218 of

those were found in the business sector.

• Eighty incidents in government/military sector, 52 in the educational division, and 41 in the

banking/credit industry were reported.

• Around 43 million attacks were detected by companies in 2014, an increase by 48 percent

since 2013.

• From financial services to top retailers, on industry has been secure.

What are Industries Planning to do?

• Cybersecurity spending is expected to touch $71 billion in 2015, a 7.9 percent increase since

2013.

• The spending is estimated to grow 8 percent every year through 2016.

• Considering the myriad of advanced attacks between cyber criminals and security software

vendors, experts believed in a big ramp in cyber security spending.

• As cyber-warfare heats up, the spending will add to the growth prospects at next-generation

security software firms.

• Reports indicate that IT professionals are shifting their investments from conventional security

technologies, like perimeter defenses, and to sophisticated cyber protections.

• Owing to this shift, many software vendors appear well-positioned heading into 2015.

Booting the Funds for Cyber Start-ups

• The rapid rise in security incidents has spurred venture capitalist firms, in particular corporate

venture arms, to spend money into cybersecurity start-ups.

• One of the biggest issues is that it is difficult to safeguard a company absolutely. That is why

there is a venture capital money flood into start-ups.

• Investors see a good opportunity for innovation to solve tough security problems existing out

here today.

• Funding for cybersecurity firms including corporate participation is 29 percent higher than in

2013 and 129 percent more than in 2012.

• Tech titan Google and world's largest semiconductor chip maker Intel are two major

corporates investing in this space.

• Even with so much money being invested in these start-ups, the influx of young firms indicate a

fierce competition.

• The flood of new entrants trying to get a foothold indicate that venture capital companies

evaluate thousands of ideas. Some stick to them, while some do not.

Boom in Cyber Insurance

• The insurance sector is also involving on one side to meet the growing demands caused by the rise in

cyberthreats.

• Companies are increasingly offering cyber-insurance to give coverage for expenses associated with a

data breach or cyber attack.

• Some of the costs include forensic and legal expenses, civil fines, and losses to a firm by an attack.

• There is additional coverage to cover cyber-extortion expenses.

• There is no government or business that is completely immune to cyber attacks. That is why we see

massive amounts of money being spent on cybersecurity in 2014.

• According to statistics from Marsh & McLennan, a U.S.-based insurance broker, cyber-insurance sales

grew 21 percent from 2012 to 2013.

• In the first half of 2014, the percent doubled.

• Thirty percent of financial institutions have bought cyber-liability insurance, while retail sector follows

with 18 percent.

• Education industry (14 percent), professional services (13 percent), healthcare and technology (10

percent), and all other industries (38 percent).

More Infohttps://blog.whichssl.com/2013/02/comodo-ice-dragon-putting-the-freeze-on-cyber-attacks/

More Infohttps://blog.whichssl.com/2013/02/comodo-ice-dragon-putting-the-freeze-on-cyber-attacks/