Authored by Sara Weathers
More and more businesses have been going remote since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, which means that cyber risk has grown exponentially. Firms and businesses have had to quickly turn to doing business virtually so they could still operate in a safe manner.
According to a recent interview with Insurance Business Magazine, Steve Prymas, chief insurance officer of Embroker, cybercrime has increased 600% since the beginning of the pandemic. Companies’ security measures were adequate while working in office, but when it comes to employees working remotely, basic security protocols are not always enough.
There are different kinds of cyber risks, but they can usually be divided into four categories: extortion, malware, phishing, and cloud vulnerabilities. Extortion, usually through ransomware, is the most widely known cyber risk. Ransomware typically attacks a company’s infrastructure and restricts employees’ access to it until the company pays a ransom fee to regain access to its system. Malware is software used to cause damage to a company’s computers, servers, or networks and phishing happens when a fraudulent message is sent to a business in order to gain access to private information. Cloud vulnerabilities happen when a hacker gains access to a business’ cloud drives through improper channels in order to access the stored information.
All businesses regardless of size are vulnerable to these cyber risks and being aware of them is the first step to ensuring your business does not fall prey to a cyberattack. Companies should educate their employees about cyber risks, as an employee clicking on a phishing link could be costly for everyone. Cyber insurance is becoming more and more popular and any company can benefit from it, as it typically covers financial losses caused by cyber-attacks and data breaches. These risks will remain, even as companies return to the office or as they shift to a remote workspace permanently, so now is the time to seriously consider cyber insurance.
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