In an environment of moving targets, it seems unimaginable that insurance against cybersecurity attacks can be robust enough to provide real protection. There are many types of risks involved, and some include physical damage to property.
Many companies remain overwhelmed by the prospect of developing a cybersecurity program. Too many still see cyber crime as an IT issue, and simply defer to that department. Cybersecurity is most definitely an information security issue and it must be treated as such. Failure to recognize this concept almost ensures a weak cybersecurity program that remains highly vulnerable to breaches.
The recent decision in Sears Roebuck & Co. and Kmart Corp. v. W/S Lebanon LLC seems timely in light of the fact that commercial landlords, tenants and their insurance providers are grappling with the problems caused by the extreme wind and rain of hurricanes. Here's what happened in that case.
With expectations for an always-on law firm, significant challenges within the legal industry to maintain competitiveness and perform due practice for cybersecurity and other disaster scenarios come from both clients and regulatory bodies. A comprehensive approach with an end-to-end availability strategy is imperative to mitigate the threats of downtime. And yet, this is easier said than done.
Part Two of a Two-Part Article
Astonishing computing power lets health care providers harness vast computing resources to drive their business plans, manage treatment protocols and crunch data to boost their practices. However, unintended consequences arise and, in the case of computers, one such consequence is cyber peril.
A man returns home unexpectedly, finds his wife with another man, and shoots him. It's an unfortunate chain of events, but certainly not unheard of. What is unusual is how the case of a love triangle like this one could lead to an Eleventh Circuit decision about homeowners' insurance.
Over nearly eight years as U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Preet Bharara became recognized as a powerful prosecutor in many areas, including government corruption and white-collar crime. Another subject for which he certainly deserves mention is his strong record helping to fight insurance fraud in New York.
IT security professionals used to warn that only two types of businesses exist: those that have been hacked, and those that will be. Now, many are even more pessimistic, and divide the world's businesses into companies that know that they have been hacked, and those that don't. Law firms are juicy targets with all the personal identifiable information (PII) contained in client files. Intellectual property practices are especially attractive to cyber thieves because of the value of patent, trademark and trade secret information.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit recently held that a Creditor Exclusion provision in D&O insurance policies may result in significant limitations on the coverage provided to the D&Os when the underlying dispute is with a creditor acting in its creditor capacity.
High-profile breaches have encouraged many businesses to proactively assess their cyber liabilities, and implement prevention and response plans. Fortunately, there are more technology options available to protect businesses than ever before, and both the U.S. government and private industry have made great strides in understanding and combating some of the most common cyber threats.
