Cyber Select is a new proposition from Allianz Insurance that provides mid corporate businesses with comprehensive cyber cover, access to crucial prevention support and incident response services.

The speed of digital transformation presents businesses with a new level of risk as companies become ever more reliant on digital solutions and cyber-crime becomes ever more sophisticated and costly.

In 2018 the most common fraud in the UK was cyber-crime, with cyber incidents also topping the 2019 Allianz Risk Barometer as the key corporate risk for UK businesses. In this fast changing environment hackers are no longer concentrating on large corporate entities. The cost of cyber security breaches to the UK mid-market business is estimated to be GBP30 billion.

Allianz is an established presence in the cyber market and Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty (AGCS) has many years of experience in cyber insurance; protecting organisations against cyber-crime and digital threats. By partnering with AGCS and sharing expertise Allianz Insurance has been able to create a new product specifically for mid-corporates.

Allianz Insurance's Cyber Select proposition offers customers the option of selectable limits and can be purchased as a standalone product, or packaged with property and casualty covers, depending upon the needs of the customer's business.

Businesses will be insured against liabilities stemming from a cyber-attack, including costs and lost income, plus forensic IT and legal support in the event of an actual or suspected breach. There's also access to a 24/7 incident response helpline, specialist claims team and free risk management support.

Comprehensive cover includes:

Business Interruption cover - loss of profits due to unavailability of IT systems.

The indemnity period covers profits lost up to 180 days following the event, which automatically starts after 12 hours of business interruption.

Privacy and confidentiality breach - covers the costs associated with a data breach

This covers the cost of damages (defence costs and those awarded) for the loss suffered by third parties as a result of a data breach, even when this does not result from a wrongful act.

Data breach response costs - to help a business regain control

This includes regulatory and legal advice costs, call centre costs (a dedicated hotline to handle enquiries from customers and third parties) and credit monitoring costs of affected third parties.

As part of the crisis management cover where a breach occurs, or is suspected Cyber Select will cover the reasonable and necessary fees and expenses of an IT forensic expert to identify, contain and repair a breach.

Access to a panel of experts provides businesses with information to help reduce the likelihood of a breach occurring. This includes complimentary access to BitSight, a leading security rating provider who can give insights into the cyber security performance and vulnerabilities of a business.

Catherine Dixon, commercial underwriting director Allianz Insurance, commented: 'For the first time data has overtaken oil as the most valuable resource and data loss can be costly financially and for the reputation of a business. The EY research revealed only 35% of organisations have cyber insurance which actually meets their needs and we believe brokers have a strong role to play in helping customers navigate this growing risk.

'Taking preventative steps is key, as Cyber hackers use sophisticated methods and businesses need to do all they can to stay one step ahead. Through our expert risk management panel, businesses can examine their system's strengths and vulnerabilities to lower their overall risk. However, should a data loss or theft happen customers can be reassured that they also have access to specialist advice, support and cover to help them recover after a breach.

'Cyber Select is more than just insurance, it's an opportunity to access a whole suite of experts who are specialists in helping businesses identify, detect and recover from cyber-attacks.'

(C) 2019 Electronic News Publishing, source ENP Newswire