Why Your Vancouver Business Needs Cyber Insurance
Cybercriminals don’t just attack big companies. Your Vancouver small business is vulnerable to a cyberattack, too. You need cyber liability insurance to protect your business from the financial consequences of a cyberattack.
Cyber insurance can help with containment costs related to a cyberattack on your Vancouver business, repair costs to your system, and with the costs of potential lawsuits from customers whose information has been hacked.
What are the biggest cyberthreats usually facing a small (and medium-sized) business owner?
1. Ransomware attack: Ransomware encrypts a business’s data and demands a ransom for the decryption key, threatening data loss or exposure. It continues to be one of the top cyberthreats to Canadian businesses and it can have a serious impact on your business’s ability to function.
2. Phishing: Phishing attacks use deceptive emails, websites, or messages that can trick your employees into revealing personal information, such as passwords and credit card details.
3. Employees: Employees acting maliciously or accidentally putting your data at risk. Your employees are your first line of defense against cyberattacks and they need training to be aware of these attacks.
4. Social engineering: Cybercriminals exploit human psychology to manipulate individuals into disclosing confidential information or performing actions that compromise security.
An example of social engineering: An employee gets an unexpected mail, claiming to be from you as the business owner, asking to transfer funds to a bank account for a major purchase.
5. Malware: Malicious software that usually make their way through with link clicks and attachment downloads.
6. Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) Attacks: DDoS attacks overwhelm a target system with excessive traffic, causing it to become unavailable to users.
If your Vancouver (or British Columbia) business has any kind of digital presence or uses technology, you can be a target for fraudsters. Do not assume that your small business wouldn’t be a target.
Ask your Western Financial Group business insurance expert about cyber liability insurance for your Vancouver small business. Cyber liability insurance is a coverage that you can add to your business insurance package.
Who needs cyber liability insurance?
- You use computer/cloud systems to store your business’s data.
- You provide software or hardware services to clients.
- You use point-of-sale systems.
- You store customer/patient data, including financial, medical or credit card data.
What does cyber insurance cover?
It helps provide your Vancouver small business with financial support if it suffers damage or loss because of a data breach or cyberattack.
What costs can cyber insurance help cover?
- Repair and restoration of damaged software systems
- Forensic investigations
- Legal advice/expenses
- Crisis management service
- A team to help you coordinate response to your affected customers
- Cyber extortion
- Regulatory expenses and fines
- System business interruption: Coverage for losses sustained due to a system outage resulting from a cyberattack.
How much does cyber insurance cost for my Vancouver business?
It depends on factors such as:
- Your industry and the services your business provides
- Amount and kind of client information that you do
- Security system(s) in place
- Employee training on cybersecurity
If you are a Vancouver business owner and you store sensitive financial and customer data, you may need a standalone cyber insurance policy with a high coverage limit.
What does cyber insurance NOT cover?
Cyber liability Insurance does not typically cover damage or loss due to:
- An employee hacking or damaging your systems or data.
- A power surge/ failure that causes damage to your systems or data (this would be covered by equipment breakdown insurance).
- Patent or intellectual property infringement. This coverage can be purchased separately.
How to protect your Vancouver business from a cyberattack
1. Identify all your business’s data, such as intellectual property, client and supplier lists and financial records. Then rank them in terms of how critical they are to your Vancouver business.
2. All small and medium-sized businesses should set up a firewall to provide a barrier between your data, the outside world, and criminals. It’s often installed by your internet service provider. In addition, some businesses are starting to install their own internal firewalls to provide additional protection.
3. If you have any employees working at home, they should have a firewall on their home network and a Virtual Private Network (VPN) to connect to the office or to surf the Internet.
4. Train your employees to think in terms of cybersecurity and adopt safe practices. Give your employees a list of safe cyber practices for your Vancouver business.
Western Insurance has licensed BUSINESS INSURANCE EXPERTS to get your Vancouver business cyber liability insurance and the right insurance package. Our experts are available now to help you navigate the business insurance journey to protect your Vancouver or British Columbia business.
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