In what could be a huge PR boost for the cyber insurance marketplace, Lloyd’s of London has “reported a 50% year-on-year increase in submissions during the first quarter.”
The market is quickly expanding following a number of large data breaches, which include the Sony Pictures hack and an international online $1 billion bank heist, which played out over the course of a year. According to Geoff White, a Lloyd’s underwriter, “in general terms, we’re continuing to see new customers purchasing cyber insurance and existing customers purchasing higher limits following recent high profile attacks. In terms of our customers, approximately 70% are first time purchasers. We’re also seeing customers in those sectors which were affected last year – and in particular in the retail sector – looking to buy higher limits.”
Recently AEGIS London predicted that 2015 would have a larger number of destructive cyber incidents compared to 2014, stating, “in 2015 we fully expect a business to fail due to the financial consequences of a cyber attack.”