White House Cybersecurity Summit: Insurance Raising the Bar

At the White House cybersecurity summit, three major cyber insurance companies, Travelers, Coalition, and Resilience, major tech companies, and Biden administration officials were among those attending and contributing insight to the growing cyber threats on US business. The White House stated at the summit that the federal government can’t face the challenge alone and that the Big Tech and insurance companies have the power, the capacity, and the responsibility to raise the cybersecurity bar.

Details of Cybersecurity Summit

Here’s what the three insurance companies commented about their role and commitment to cybersecurity at the summit.

Travelers

President and CEO of the Travelers Companies, Alan Schnitzer states, “We are proud to join this critical discussion alongside our partners in government, technology, financial services, and education, among others.”

The Travelers Risk Index indicates that cyber risk is the highest concern among American business leaders and businesses of all sizes. He has witnessed how a business is impacted by the devastating effects of a breach and making small improvements to data security can have a big impact. According to the research, he explains that a majority of ransomware can be prevented by implementing affordable mitigation controls such as multi-factor authentication and practicing good cyber hygiene.

He understands that improving cybersecurity in the United States plays a major role in the insurance industry. Performing cyber risk assessments, advising on strengthening cyber defense, and ensuring ongoing cyber vulnerability monitoring are among the services the insurers are providing companies to manage cyber risks effectively and efficiently. Insurers are also providing technical expertise and financial support to aid in the recovery effort after a breach has occurred. With the insurance industry working together, they can discover and communicate what is trending in the cyber risk environment and promote good cybersecurity practices.

Alan also explains, “I also announced the participation of Travelers in the National Institute of Standards and Technology initiative to develop a new framework for public and private entities to improve the security and integrity of the chain. technology supply. It is an important step in improving the overall cybersecurity of the country.”

He indicated that employees, customers, and small and large business owners are ultimately the victims of cybercrime. He will continue to work together with the Administration and his colleagues to make protecting their interests a priority. With the cyber landscape always changing, Travelers is dedicated to providing services, ranging from preparedness and prevention to mitigation and recovery, to individuals and companies.

Coalition

Coalition explains that by incentivizing controls to reduce the chance or success of a cyber-attack and provide companies, who had to file a claim, a lifeline, cyber insurance can solve the country’s cybersecurity challenges. Co-Founder and CEO of Cyber Insurance and Security Provider Coalition, Joshua Motta stated, “As threats from ransomware and other cybercrime accelerate, small and medium businesses cannot be left to fend for themselves. It takes a broad combination of accessible technologies and aligned incentives to keep these businesses safe.”

Coalition is committed to helping companies control their exposure to cyber risks by offering their Coalition Control, a policyholder risk management platform that includes attack surface monitoring, recommendations on closing security vulnerabilities, and a downloadable risk assessment, for free.

Resilience

Vishaal Hariprasad, CEO of Resilience, explains, “I share the goal of raising safety standards, but I am also concerned about the loss of protection for victims who would otherwise outsource their crisis to the public, their employees, and their customers. When insurance is at its best, it does two things: it pays for covered claims, whether it’s health, auto, or cyber insurance; and, it points the way for actions or steps that make bad things less likely to happen – whether it’s quitting smoking, wearing a seat belt, or deploying MFA. Our obligation is to do both.”

Resilience has provided four key points in which government and industry can work together:

1. Prioritize Cyber Health – Encourage industry collaboration using the Bullies Chair to point out the importance of overall safety.
2. Encourage Sharing More Information – both industry and government and vice versa.
3. Insurance Industry Collaboration – Critical Infrastructure companies set the cybersecurity standards to a minimum.
4. Providing Legal Resources to Our Industry – To Counter Cyber Attackers.

Hariprasad is quoted, “The insurance industry has historically been able to set up incentives to improve human behavior. We have seen it with fire, auto, and health insurance. This is the role that cyber insurance should play in security.”

Vishaal explains, “The insurance industry is uniquely positioned to have a mutual interest in the fight against ransomware. We want our businesses to be stronger, and more resilient when it comes to cybersecurity when they partner with us. If our customers are affected, the insurance pays for this loss. Our client’s cyber risk is our cyber risk. Simply put, Resilience believes that putting capital at risk without requiring policyholder action is a kind of moral hazard.”

The commitment these companies have put forth is a great step in increasing the overall awareness of the importance of good cybersecurity practices and strengthened security posture. At SpearTip, we strive to provide businesses with a way to protect their most precious assets from threat actors, maximize revenue, and continue to operate everyday tasks.

With cyber threats, it’s a matter of if, not when. If you’re not actively implementing the protocols mentioned by these insurance companies, regularly auditing your networks, or assessing risks, you’re waiting to be targeted by malicious threat actors. Take the advice of the federal government, insurance, and SpearTip, and be proactive in protecting your business. It’s evident that shielding your network from threats is crucial for your business operations. Get ahead of cyber threats, today.

If your company is experiencing a breach, call our Security Operations Center at 833.997.7327 to speak directly with an engineer.