Cyber attacks have been a significant challenge for businesses worldwide in recent years. In India, for example, there is a steep rise in cyber attacks, so it is essential to be a step ahead of cybercriminals. According to 2023 statistics, India ranked third globally in the number of phishing attacks, following the United States of America and the United Kingdom. With the ever-increasing number and sophistication of cyberattacks, it is hardly surprising that companies are turning to cyber insurance to protect themselves from financial and reputational damage.
A Wake-Up Call: India’s Growing Cybersecurity Threats
In India, the digital ecosystem is rapidly expanding, and Internet users are estimated to exceed 900 million by 2025. However, this new digitization has also caused a growing number of cyber-attacks. In 2023 alone, there were significant breaches that shook the country:
In October 2023, hackers hacked into the ICMR database and stole the personally identifiable information (PII) of about 815 million Indians. That information was then exfiltrated further to the darknet, with alarming implications for privacy and data security. In December 2023, hackers intruded on BSNL, obtaining confidential data from 30,000 optical fiber terminal landline subscribers and making it accessible on the deep web. The RailYatri app also experienced 42 data breaches in the past five years, and stolen data was sold on dark web marketplaces. At the 2023 G-20 summit, cyber-hackers launched 16 lakh DDoS attacks per minute on the official conference website because of its importance. This is an increasing cyber-attack landscape targeting the public and private sectors.
These incidents underline the critical need for businesses and individuals to secure their digital assets against evolving cyber threats. With the sustained acceleration of India’s digital spine, the threat of cyberattacks will only escalate. The need for cyber insurance continues to be higher than before.
Why Cyber Insurance is Crucial for Indian Businesses
With the digital world becoming increasingly crucial to business, the threats to digital security are also increasing. According to the Computer Emergency Response Team-India (CERT-In), all software, networks, and hardware are susceptible to attacks employed by organizations in India. This includes, for example, banking, financial services, IT, healthcare, and e-commerce. Here’s why cyber insurance is essential for these sectors:
- Rising Attacks: In early 2024, Indian companies faced 2,807 weekly cyber attacks, a 33% rise from 2023 (Checkpoint report).
- Financial & Reputational Damage: Cyber attacks can cause data recovery costs, legal penalties, and reputational loss. Cyber insurance mitigates these risks.
- Data Theft & Privacy Breaches: Hackers target valuable data for the dark web; insurance covers response and recovery costs.
- Business Interruption: DDoS attacks disrupt operations; insurance helps recover losses from downtime.
- Legal Protection: Covers liabilities from data breaches, privacy violations, and cyber extortion.
Types of Cyber Threats Covered by Cyber Insurance
Cyber insurance policies typically cover many cyber incidents and attacks. The following is a description of the most common forms of coverage.
- Cyber Fraud: Attackers manipulate individuals to access confidential information like passwords or credit card details.
- Phishing & Email Spoofing: Fake emails or websites trick people into revealing sensitive data.
- Data Breaches: Insurance covers costs like victim notification, legal fees, and data recovery after a breach.
- Cyber Extortion: Ransomware attacks demand payments; insurance can reimburse ransom and related expenses.
- IT Theft: Covers losses from stolen devices containing sensitive data.
- Privacy Breaches: Helps with liability and penalties for accidental privacy violations or unauthorized disclosures.
- E-Commerce & Multimedia Liability: Protects against cyber risks in online shopping, payment breaches, and digital marketing content.
- Network Security Liability: Covers damages from security lapses causing financial harm to customers or partners.
Cyber Insurance Providers in India
In India, different insurance companies that offer cyber insurance plans are available, covering the risks to businesses and individuals. Some of the leading providers in India include:
- Mitigata: Mitigata is one of the most prominent players in the cyber insurance industry. It provides tailored products for protecting businesses from different types of cyber attacks. Its policies are focused on providing comprehensive coverage (risk management services, incident response, and post-incident help).
- Bajaj Allianz: The largest insurance company in India, Bajaj Allianz provides general cyber insurance that covers a wide range of cyber threats, such as phishing, data breaches, and cyber ransacking.
- ICICI Lombard: ICICI Lombard provides cyber insurance plans suitable for business users and individual consumers. As part of its guidelines, it reimburses cybercrime-related financial losses, including costs for cyber-attack recovery.
- SBI Insurance: SBI Insurance offers cyber insurance for the private and business sectors. Their policies are designed to protect against online fraud, cyber theft, and data breaches.
- HDFC ERGO: HDFC ERGO’s cyber insurance covers various cyber risks, such as phishing, hacking, and online fraud, and it is catered to both individuals and organizations.
In this, insurance companies underwrite policies with premiums (i.e., 2,000 to 5,000 INR each month). Access and one-stop-shop coverage make cyber insurance a clever business proposition for companies wishing to protect themselves against the increasing problem of cyber-attacks.
The Growth of Cyber Insurance in India
Cyber insurance has grown significantly in India over the last few years, with the market size exceeding $6.06 billion as of 2023. Such expansion is a consequence of the relentless rise of cyber-attacks and the growing incorporation of digital infrastructure into domains like banking, healthcare, and e-commerce.
The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has led the way in the innovation of cyber insurance in India. [C] In 2020, the Insurance and Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) set up a working group to identify ways to market cyber liability insurance. The panel suggested the idea of holistic policy
Cyber Insurance and Risk Management: A Growing Trend
As cyberattacks become increasingly sophisticated, businesses adopt a more security-aggressive posture and proactive cybersecurity. The introduction of technologies such as firewalls, antivirus, intrusion detection systems, and endpoint detection and response systems helps mitigate the risk of cyberattacks. No security measure is perfect, and skilled attackers can bypass even the most advanced defenses. That’s where cyber insurance plays a role.
With a trend toward transferring all non-trivial, residual digital cyber risk to cyber-risk insurers, enterprises can then mitigate the adverse financial outcome of a cyber-incident. Insurance organizations such as Mitigata offer policies in addition to financial protection that can help companies with incident response, due diligence, and cybersecurity audits.
Conclusion: Why You Need Cyber Insurance in 2024
With the growing size of the digital world in India, cyber-attacks are now more frequent, more sophisticated, and more destructive. Cyber-attacks are an issue that businesses of any size can and should be able to defend from by adopting a preventative posture. Cyber insurance is an inexpensive and practical approach to mitigating loss arising from cybercrime. By building a general policy, you can guarantee that your company’s assets will be secure from the growing number of risks in cyberspace.
If you’re looking for reliable, customizable, and affordable cyber insurance, look no further than Mitigata. Thanks to their expertise in risk management, cyber risk, and cyber insurance, Mitigata can help protect your company from the constant increase in cyber attacks.
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