{"id":626640,"date":"2023-04-07T15:52:26","date_gmt":"2023-04-07T20:52:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.sellorbuyhomefast.com\/index.php\/2023\/04\/07\/three-reasons-small-business-owners-need-cyber-insurance\/"},"modified":"2023-04-07T15:52:26","modified_gmt":"2023-04-07T20:52:26","slug":"three-reasons-small-business-owners-need-cyber-insurance","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2023\/04\/07\/three-reasons-small-business-owners-need-cyber-insurance\/","title":{"rendered":"Three Reasons Small-Business Owners Need Cyber Insurance"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Keith Huckaby, Partner at <\/em>RiskAssure<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

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getty<\/small><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Like it or not, cyberattacks are now an expected part of running a business. It\u2019s no longer a matter of if<\/em> a breach will occur but when. <\/em>To this end, it\u2019s critical for businesses of all sizes to be prepared\u2014but especially small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), as they have become primary targets for threat actors. SMBs often lack the resources of their enterprise-level peers to mitigate and combat the consequences of a cyber event, making it easy for threat actors to find a way in.<\/p>\n

Having operated in the SMB space for years, I\u2019ve seen firsthand how security issues can plague small business owners that lack the resources of their enterprise-level counterparts. There\u2019s often a severe lack of visibility into the amount of risk SMBs carry. This is why I took the leap into the cybersecurity industry to help business leaders understand what they can do to protect their companies from some of today\u2019s biggest threats.<\/p>\n

While the exact number of cyber attacks on small businesses is difficult to determine (due to many attacks going unreported or unnoticed), it takes only a glance at the latest general breach statistics to grasp the breadth of the problem. According to research from Cisco, a whopping 43% of cyberattacks<\/a> target small businesses. Moreover, Cisco also found that small businesses spend an average of $955,000 per attack on restoring normal operations\u2014a number that could easily be reduced with the right protection in place. While these alarming numbers are enough to make any business owner second-guess the need for cyber insurance, here are a few other reasons your small business should strongly consider shopping around for a practical policy.<\/p>\n

Invisible data is impacting your risk factor. <\/strong><\/h2>\n

Many small businesses don\u2019t have cyber insurance simply because they lack visibility into the volume of sensitive information they\u2019re responsible for protecting. The cold hard truth is that you probably have significantly more risk than you think. But if you can\u2019t see it, you can\u2019t do much to keep it safe. To make matters worse, a CNBC survey in 2022<\/a> found that many SMBs are not concerned about cyber threats. A majority of these businesses that participated in the survey even felt they could bounce back from an attack quickly if they experienced a hit.<\/p>\n

Bottom line? Business leaders need to see their sensitive information (the volume and the level of risk it carries) in order to understand file footprints, how many files could actually be taken and how employees are treating those files\u2014which brings me to my next point.<\/p>\n

Employee training is not enough. <\/strong><\/h2>\n

Did you know nearly a quarter of all breaches are caused by human error? In IBM\u2019s 2022 \u201cCost of a Data Breach\u201d report, it found that 21% of breaches<\/a> were caused unintentionally through negligent actions of employees or contractors.<\/p>\n

If the volume of your sensitive information continues to grow, it could be an indicator that there\u2019s a lack of accountability for employees to follow cybersecurity best practices. Leverage tools that show you whether or not you\u2019ve done an effective job of seeing if people are following your guidelines and not just ticking the boxes. Determine how employees will be accountable for contributing to your cybersecurity best practice\u2014and make it an engaging journey. For example, consider gamifying the process by setting employee goals around your company\u2019s policies (e.g., \u201cZero injuries going on 100 days straight\u201d receives an Amazon gift card).<\/p>\n

Brand reputation is tough to repair.<\/strong><\/h2>\n

It\u2019s simply a fact that big brands are far more likely to make a comeback than their smaller counterparts. For small-business owners, a cyber incident could mean shutting down shop for good\u2014even if you can recoup the monetary loss, your brand reputation may never be the same. Building customer trust is no easy feat, as any business owner knows, and once it\u2019s been broken, it\u2019s even harder to repair. Have a business plan that includes cyber insurance to help mitigate the effects of a cyber incident and maintain brand trust.<\/p>\n

Protect your company with cyber insurance.<\/strong><\/h2>\n

When choosing a cyber insurance policy for your business, it\u2019s easy to feel overwhelmed\u2014especially by some of the price tags that come with the larger insurers. Here are some things to keep top of mind when seeking a policy that\u2019s right for your company.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Take an in-depth look at your current business policy to see what it does and does not cover in terms of cyber insurance. General business policies often carry bare-bones minimal protection for a cyber incident, meaning that you\u2019re still responsible in the event of a breach.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Understand the volume of sensitive data your company is responsible for protecting. There are tools that can help you calculate the volume of your risk and attach a dollar amount to how much it\u2019s actually worth. This kind of insight allows you to better negotiate with cyber insurance providers.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Reduce the volume of your risk if possible. It\u2019s not uncommon for companies to hold onto information that is no longer needed. This could include files like duplicate items and outdated information that isn\u2019t a requirement to keep on hand. Take steps to completely eliminate these files before securing a cyber insurance policy, as it can help reduce the amount of your quote.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Once you\u2019ve settled on the policy that\u2019s right for you, read it in detail to make sure you know exactly what\u2019s covered. Just like any type of insurance, not all policies are created equal.<\/p>\n

Takeaway <\/strong><\/h2>\n

Don\u2019t wait until it\u2019s too late to get cyber insurance. Small-business owners should strongly consider obtaining a policy in order to minimize the impact of any cyber-related incidents (breaches, leaks, etc.). Those who already have a cyber insurance policy in place can optimize their existing coverage by leveraging tools that can help them get fair and accurate pricing based on the amount\/volume of sensitive information their business carries. It\u2019s also worth noting that optimizing coverage will be critical as cyber insurance premiums continue to increase<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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Forbes Business Council<\/a> is the foremost growth and networking organization for business owners and leaders. Do I qualify?<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

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Read More<\/a>
\n Alejandro Block<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Keith Huckaby, Partner at RiskAssure. getty Like it or not, cyberattacks are now an expected part of running a business. It\u2019s no longer a matter of if a breach will occur but when. To this end, it\u2019s critical for businesses of all sizes to be prepared\u2014but especially small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), as they have<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":626641,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1279,1862],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-626640","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-reasons","8":"category-three"},"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/626640","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=626640"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/626640\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/626641"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=626640"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=626640"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=626640"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}