Growing Demand for Cyber Insurance in India

 The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted organisational functioning and intensified technological and financial risks. There has been a rise in internet usage as people are performing from home, thus increasing the probabilities of cyber-crime. consistent with ICICI Lombard General Insurance, within the third week of June, hackers in China made 40,300 cyber attacks on India that were facilitated by COVID-19 scams. Considering the fragile situation rising from the work from home policies permitted by organizations, this is often indeed the time for people to stay alert. Earlier cyber-security insurance was primarily accepted by corporate which are now being increasingly demanded by retail customers and individuals performing from home.

Increase in Cyber Risks

Employees performing from home have started their inquiry for cyber insurance. As companies are permitting work from home, individual policy for cyber insurance in india is probably going to urge established soon. Few common cyber risks include malware attack, phishing, spoofing, and fraud , among others. Employees remotely logging in are making it easier for cyber criminals to hide themselves while attempting to access systems with personal and sensitive data. due to the pandemic, the hackers are exploiting the present situation by luring people into clicking links containing malicious payloads. Some possible threats can be:

Use of COVID-19 as a topic to hold out phishing,

Malware distribution are often done through coronavirus themed lures,

Registration of domain names having words associated with coronavirus or COVID-19.

Growing Demand for Cyber Insurance

Increasing digitalization by businesses, rise in awareness of cyber security, uneasiness regarding the implications of GDPR and India’s Personal Data Protection Bill have led various companies to think about buying insurance. Demand for cyber retail cover is probably going to return from millennial as they're the foremost internet savvy. In 2018, DSCI observed a 40% increase in cyber-security insurance purchase in India. The cyber insurance market is predicted to grow globally at a CAGR of 27% from INR 29,400 in 2017 to INR 1.59 lakh crore in 2024.

The Chief Technical Officer of Bajaj Allianz General Insurance Sasikumar Adidamu said that as work from home has led employees to use their house system, they could not necessarily have the type of firewall that's present within the office system. they're expecting a requirement for insurance as surge in internet usage has increased the likeliness of cyber fraud incidents. Bajaj Allianz General Insurance has not only witnessed a surge in inquiries, but has also been approached by companies to extend the limit of cyber cover as they're now experiencing the likelihood of future cyber risks. ICICI Lombard that earlier wont to get enquiries from BFSI and IT companies, is now getting contacted by various sectors like education, SMEs and hospitality. IT, telecom, e-wallet service providers, telecom, banks, financial institutions have majorly demanded for cyber security as they handle an outsized amount of knowledge . But lately traditional manufacturing and infrastructure companies have begun to demand also .

Insurance companies offering cyber insurance

Bajaj Allianz: Bajaj Allianz started retail cyber security within the end of 2017. they need seen a CAGR of roughly 50 percent in premium in its cyber insurance portfolio. they supply cover against fraud , phishing, Email spoofing, cyber extortion, media liability, and malware attacks, among others.

ICICI Lombard: they supply protection against cyber and digital risks that end in loss . The Retail Cyber insurance policy by ICICI will provide cover against cyber bullying, malware intrusion, and cyber extortion, among others. It also covers ‘individual lost wages’ and ‘reputation injury’.

HDFC Ergo: they cover all the devices under one insurance plan. no matter the age of the youngsters , their policy covers the entire family from cyber crimes. It provides online fraud protection against phishing, email spoofing, and damage to e-reputation.