Insurance for software developers and ecommerce sites is growing more popular, and one of the top forms of digital insurance is cyber insurance and data breach coverage. In this guide, we’ll cover everything you need to know about this kind of insurance and we’ll review some of the top cyber insurance companies.
Also read:
Cyber Liability Insurance
Cyber security liability insurance is one of the most crucial forms of coverage available to enterprises and businesses because it protects them from the liability arising from data breaches and other cyber security failures.
Human error committed in the field of IT isn’t rare. In fact, we see in IBM’s 2020 report on data breach that 131 of breaches recorded were caused by human error and cyber attacks resulting from it cost $4.27 million.
This kind of cyber security insurance will account for legal fees and settlements. You can get this in the form of commercial general liability insurance and professional liability insurance. And also, one word of advice ; don’t complain if it’s expensive as that’s better, because it means generous policy limits.
Insurance for Data Breaches
Cyber breach insurance is similar to cyber liability insurance in that it takes effect when your company has been hacked or has dealt with a data breach. However, the difference is that this kind of cyber security insurance is designed to cover costs for lawsuits, settlements, and tasks need to be done to reverse the damage done.
A data breach is costly and insurance for data breaches will help a lot. Take a look at the data we extracted from IBM’s cost of data breach report to see how important it is to get insured.
source: IBM
Cost for data breach is higher than the previous year at a margin of $380,000 or 10% increase. Notice that data breach cost mellowed a bit from 2019 – 2020, and then there’s a dramatic spike in 2021.
One reason for this is the implementation of work from home models that required companies to rely more on digital solutions to operate due to comply with safety work protocols.
Still, the above figure only provides a general perception of how data breach costs. Using IBM’s report, we also took a look at the top 5 most costly forms of data breach:
Data Breach | Cost (in millions) |
---|---|
Business Email Compromise | $5.01 |
Phishing | $4.65 |
Malicious Insider | $4.61 |
Compromised Credentials | $4.37 |
Vulnerability in Third Party Software | $4.33 |
source: IBM
In terms of cost by industry/sector, the healthcare sector experienced heavy blows that’s recorded at $9.23 million, which is a 29.5% increase of the cost from the previous year. In line with this, businesses providing health-related services are the ones that need data breach insurance the most.
Get all the best quotes from leading providers in a click of a button!
Cyber Insurance Cost
Cyber security insurance cost depends on a few different factors, including the size of your enterprise. A larger company will have steeper cyber insurance pricing because they present a larger risk to the insurance company due to their larger number of customers and the more sensitive data that they may have.
A small firm may have the data of a couple dozen clients while a larger company may have info from thousands of people. Since a cyber insurance quote is based on how much an insurance carrier may have to pay out in a worst case scenario, it’s plain to see why your insurance would be more expensive as a bigger company.
Company | Cost per month | Cost per year |
---|---|---|
Coalition | $131 | $1,572 |
Beazley | $124 | $1,488 |
Chubb | $123 | $1,476 |
AIG | $119 | $1,428 |
Hiscox | $127 | $1,524 |
AXA | $137 | $1,644 |
Travelers | $123 | $1,476 |
CNA | $129 | $1,548 |
AON | $133 | $1,596 |
Cowbell | $120 | $1,440 |
Zurich | $125 | $1,500 |
Allianz | $135 | $1,620 |
Marsh | $131 | $1,572 |
Liberty Mutual | $125 | $1,500 |
Average Cost | $127 | $1,527 |
We collected these cyber insurance policy quotes using a medium-sized firm with relatively sensitive data that needed to be protected to give a baseline idea of how much an average policy costs. You can expect to pay about 127 dollars per month or 1,527 dollars per year for a cyber insurance policy.
Cyber Liability Insurance Cost
Cybersecurity insurance coverage typically costs about the same as a cyber liability policy unless you get your cyber liability policy bundled in with general liability coverage. Some general liability policies come included with a lower amount of cyber liability coverage with a limit of about $50,000.
Best Cyber Insurance Companies
If you’re searching for cyber insurance online, then you’re likely wondering about the best cybersecurity insurance companies out there. To make that easier for you, we’ve rounded up a list of the top cyber insurance providers on the market. Read to know their pros, cons, and pricing for a $1 million cyber liability coverage.
Coalition Cyber Insurance
Coalition is a relatively new insurance company that specializes entirely in cyber insurance. The company is based in San Francisco, and they just recently secured a Series E funding, paving the way for their meteoric rise to becoming one of the top carriers of cyber insurance.
Coalition Policy Details
Coalition offers several types of cyber insurance, ranging from 3rd party liability to 1st party liability coverage. Some of their offers include network and information security liability, multimedia content liability, computer replacement insurance, and even digital asset restoration.
Pros
- Specializes in cyber security
- Huge range of coverage
- Computer replacement coverage
Cons
- Relatively young company
Average cost : $131
Best for : Tech firms looking for security solutions
Rating : 5/5
Beazley Cyber Insurance
Founded in 1986, the Beazley Group is one of the many underwriters at Lloyd’s of London, meaning that they benefit from robust chains of security in the insurance world. The company mainly focuses on providing clients with specialist insurance policies like network security insurance.
Beazley Policy Details
Beazley offers a range of products to customers looking for cyber insurance coverage, including their breach response policy, information security and privacy insurance, and their MediaTech policy. Each of their policies are tailored to specific digital businesses since not all cyber insurance claims are the same.
Pros
- Specialized policies
- Relatively affordable
- Available in the US, Europe, and Asia
Cons
- Slow claims response
Average cost : $124
Best for : Specialized coverage
Rating : 4/5
Chubb Cyber Insurance
Chubb Limited is based in Zurich, and it’s one of the largest insurance companies in the world, offering a wide range of insurance policies, including property and casualty coverage, health insurance, life insurance, and, of course, cyber insurance coverage. Operating in over 55 countries, Chubb offers near-worldwide coverage.
Chubb Policy Details
Chubb offers a variety of products and services in the cyber security space. This includes their Cyber Enterprise Risk Management policy, the DigiTech Enterprise Risk Management, and Chubb’s Integrity+. Alongside these policies, they offer incident response solutions, endpoint security solutions, and many more useful services.
Pros
- Available almost worldwide
- Rated extremely reliable
- Good price
Cons
- Less specialized in cyber insurance than other firms
Average cost : $123
Best for : Response solutions
Rating : 4/5
AIG Cyber Insurance
AIG, which stands for the American International Group, is an insurance company that has been running for over 100 years. Originally founded in Shanghai, China, the company now has its HQ in New York City. The company operates in over 80 countries, giving Chubb a run for their money as a truly international insurer.
AIG Policy Details
AIG has a few different forms of cyber attack insurance, ranging from their CyberEdge coverage to CyberEdge Plus for more advanced customers. AIG also offers additional services, including threat scoring and analytics, and they’ll even provide some customers with up to $25,000 worth of proactive tools to prevent losses.
Pros
- International coverage
- Proactive loss prevention tools
- Affordable
Cons
- Quotes are a bit slow to come through
Average cost : $119
Best for : Worldwide coverage
Rating : 4/5
Hiscox Cyber Insurance
Hiscox has existed since the early 1900s, when it was originally founded as a marine insurance underwriter for Lloyd’s of London. To this day, Hiscox is still part of the Lloyd’s network, and the company is known for providing various forms of specialist insurance coverage, including cyber security coverage.
Hiscox Policy Details
Hiscox offers a range of benefits with its cyber liability insurance policies, including access to its CyberClear Academy, which trains you to mitigate the risk of getting your data stolen. The Hiscox policy also comes with loss of income compensation, which isn’t available from all competitors.
Pros
- Loss of income compensation
- Access to the CyberClear Academy
- High degree of reliability
Cons
- Less experienced in cyber insurance
Average cost : $127
Best for : Cyber security insurance for small business
Rating : 3.5/5
AXA Cyber Insurance
AXA is a multinational insurance company that is technically based in Paris, France, but the company has multiple subsidiaries all around the world. In practice, this means that you can get AXA coverage in the United States, Africa, the Middle East, and Europe.
AXA Policy Details
AXA offers its CyberRiskConnect policy to clients looking for cyber insurance, and their policy has a range of benefits, including advanced endpoint protection for risk mitigation. They also work to protect you from phishing and social engineering and provide training on privacy awareness.
Pros
- Wide range of risk mitigation strategies
- Adaptable policy
- Business interruption coverage
Cons
- Expensive
Average cost : $137
Best for : Large corporations
Rating : 3/5
Travelers Cyber Insurance
Travelers was founded in 1853 as St. Paul Fire and Marine and was eventually refounded in 2004 as The Travelers Companies. The company originally started in Minnesota but they currently have their HQ in New York City. Despite this, the company’s largest office is in Hartford, CT.
Travelers Policy Details
Travelers offers cyber liability insurance to its clients, and it consists of a program that comes bundled with pre-breach services. These services are offered by Symantec, one of the largest companies in the cyber security space, and they also allow you to access the Travelers Cyber Academy for better security training.
Pros
- Pre-breach services by Symantec
- Good price
- Cyber security coaches available
Cons
- Fewer offerings than the competition
Average cost : $123
Best for : Medium-sized businesses
Rating : 3/5
CNA Cyber Insurance
CNA was founded as the Continental Casualty Company in 1897, and it is one of the largest commercial insurance companies in the United States. This company specializes in providing property and casualty insurance to businesses but they have also expanded into cyber security insurance.
CNA Cyber Security Policy Details
CNA offers a range of services alongside their cyber security policies, including CNA Cyberprep, which adequately prepares business for threats. They also offer CNA Netprotect 360, which combines cyber protection and risk management into a single policy that keeps things easy to manage.
Pros
- Modular insurance options
- CyberPrep
- Network failure coverage
Cons
- Less experienced in cyber insurance than competitors
Average cost : $129
Best for : Additional resources
Rating : 3/5
AON Cyber Insurance
While AON is a British insurance company based in London. It was formed out of the merger of the Ryan Insurance Group and the Combined Insurance Company of America. The new company renamed itself to AON, which is a Gaelic word that means “one.” Quite fitting considering it was formed from the merger of two companies.
AON Policy Details
AON doesn’t offer cookie-cutter policies like many of their competitors. Their agents will evaluate your needs when it comes to cyber insurance and they will tailor an insurance policy to match the amount of protection you need and the price that you’re willing to pay for coverage.
Pros
- Tailor-made policies
- Flexible pricing
- Quick to provide a quote
Cons
- Expensive
Average cost : $133
Best for : Custom coverage
Rating : 3.5/5
Cowbell Cyber Insurance
Cowbell is a unique provider of cyber insurance space because it leaves underwriting its AI-based algorithms. Their algorithm works to determine the risk that a company is facing and then defines it on a scale ranging from 1 to 100.
Cowbell Policy Details
Cowbell offers standalone cyber risk insurance policies that are not meant to be combined with other forms of coverage. This means that you can rely on them solely for your cyber insurance needs because all computations are done automatically.
Pros
- AI-based continuous underwriting
- Specialized in cyber insurance
- Individualized coverage
Cons
- Potentially too cutting-edge for more traditional clients
Average cost: $120
Best for : Continuous underwriting
Rating : 4/5
Zurich Cyber Insurance
While this may not surprise you, Zurich Insurance is based in Zurich, Switzerland, and they are the largest insurer in the country. The company has customers in over 200 countries, making them one of the most extensive multinational insurance firms in the world.
Zurich Policy Details
Zurich offers a variety of first party coverage for firms looking for cyber insurance. These include breach costs coverage, business income loss insurance, digital asset replacement expenses, and cyber extortion reward payments.
Pros
- Reliable coverage
- Proactive measures
- Also offers third-party coverage
Cons
- Slow claims response
Average cost : $125
Best for : First-party coverage
Rating : 3.5/5
Allianz Cyber Security
Allianz has been in business for over 130 years, and the company is based in Munich, Germany. Allianz is one of the largest insurance companies in the world, as well as one of the largest financial services companies. The company offers worldwide coverage due to its immense size.
Allianz Cyber Insurance Policy Details
Allianz offers their customers cyber security under the Allianz Cyber Protect policy. This policy includes data breach liability insurance, business interruption coverage, restoration costs for lost data, media liability, and IT forensic support to help reduce the damage to a company’s reputation.
Pros
- Extremely reliable
- Serves customers worldwide
- Offers IT forensic support
Cons
- A little pricey
Average cost : $135
Best for : Reliability and worldwide service
Rating : 5/5
Marsh Cyber Insurance
Marsh was started in the early 20th century, and it was originally founded to tend to the insurance needs of railroads. During the 1960s, the company went public and it has been growing ever since. The company’s most recent acquisition was Assurance Holdings, Inc., based in Schaumburg, IL.
Marsh Policy Details
Marsh offers a few different cyber insurance policies depending on the needs of their customers. The first is their Cyber Risk policy, though you can also opt for their Cyber Liability insurance policy which isn’t offered directly through them but rather through their parent company, Marsh McLennan.
Pros
- Covers ransomware and breaches
- Data breach notification
- Business interruption coverage
Cons
- Cyber liability has to go through parent company
Average cost : $131
Best for : Large-scale commercial cyber liability coverage
Rating : 3.5/5
Liberty Mutual Cyber Insurance
Liberty Mutual was founded in Massachusetts in 1912, and the company has since become the third-largest provider of property and casualty insurance in the United States. Alongside that, Liberty Mutual data breach insurance is a growing part of their business due to the increasing popularity of cyber insurance products.
Liberty Mutual Policy Details
Liberty Mutual’s Cyber Liability insurance policy comes with a range of benefits, including the fact that they monitor your credit and notify you when you’ve sustained a breach. The company will also cover any revenue that you lose due to network outages, and they will pay out ransoms if you’re being extorted.
Pros
- Credit monitoring
- Restoration of data and equipment
- Coverage of regulatory payments and fines
Cons
- Not specialized in cyber security
Average cost : $125
Best for : Monitoring and notifications
Rating : 3/5
Get all the best quotes from leading providers in a click of a button!