The collection of more actuarial data, as well as detailed underwriting and rating information, will hopefully drive the insurance industry to the next level as it will better represent insureds cyber risk. To help drive the collection and aggregation of cyber insurance data, the Insurance Services Office (ISO) is currently collecting premium, exposure and loss data for both first-party coverages and cyber liability policies from insures willing to participate. Once analyzed, the data will be available to organizations that chose to participate. “Given the heightened awareness, concerns, and increasing frequency of cybersecurity attacks, cyber data collection for the purposes of mitigating risk and pricing risk are critical,” said Joseph Izzo, senior vice president of data strategy and information management at ISO Solutions. “Data collection and its transformation into actionable information are a concern for many company executives and their insurers, as well as regulators and government agencies at the federal and state levels.”
Insurers have until Sept. 30, 2016 to submit their data. Although many insurance agencies may be hesitant to do so, data sharing will likely play a crucial role in staying one step ahead of cybercriminals – a task that certainly is not guaranteed. “Insurers know that data breaches can be costly for businesses. They need to provide coverage not only to investigate the incident, notify affected parties and restore lost data but also for liability resulting from the unauthorized release of client information,” said Maroun Mourad, senior vice president of commercial lines, domestic and global, at ISO Solutions. “Having robust data is critical to the development of the cyber insurance market, which is why we’ll be reaching out directly to insurers to explain the benefits of providing their data and to help them with the electronic submission process.”