One of the best ways to stay safe in our modern, digital world is to get personal cyber insurance. As we add more devices to our homes for entertainment and convenience, it is increasingly important to protect those devices from cyber threats. Plus, learning good digital hygiene practices can help you avoid falling victim to cyber fraud. While hackers are getting smarter by the day, personal cyber insurance can help protect your devices and remediate your identity if you become a victim of a cyberattack.
We have answers to your basic personal cyber insurance questions to help you make the best decision for your needs. Learn what cyber insurance is, why it’s an add-on option for your homeowners insurance policy, benefits of personal cyber insurance and more.
What is cyber insurance?
Also commonly known as cybersecurity insurance, cyber insurance is, “designed to mitigate losses from a variety or cyber incidents, including data breaches, business interruption, and network damage” according to Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA).
For businesses, cyber insurance protects their operations from cyber threats like data breaches, fraud, identity theft and more. It’s essential for companies to keep their sensitive information private and protected while also securing the information of their clients. There are preventative measures businesses can take to work with their insurance company to minimize risk. CISA says companies can also work to implement best practices for the needs of their specific industry to ensure their data and data management strategies are safe.
Personal cyber insurance focuses on an individual or family that’s insured on a homeowners insurance policy. The same way a data breach, fraud, identity theft or a virus can exploit a business, those same threats can happen through your personal technology like phones, tablets, computers and other smart devices. A personal cyber insurance policy helps protect your digital life through educational resources and tools to restore your identity if it is stolen.
Personal cyber insurance also goes beyond the services banks and credit card companies may offer for identity theft. Banks and credit cards typically assist with credit and Social Security monitoring but may not help with the costs associated with restoring your identity if you get hacked. With home cyber protection through a personal cyber insurance policy, you can restore your devices plus any covered costs associated with restoring your identity.
Do homeowners need cyber coverage?
It’s essential to add personal cyber insurance to your home policy for adequate protection. Cyber coverage can help pay for the costs associated with recovery of your identity and devices in the event of cyber extortion or fraud.
There are many ways you and your devices can be subjected to hackers. For example, let’s say you’re at home using your personal tablet to purchase gifts. You unknowingly use a scam website to make a single purchase. When you set up your account on the phony website, you used the exact username and password as the email address attached to the account. Hackers use this information to steal personal information and open a credit card in your name. A few weeks later, you see your credit score has dropped significantly. After some digging, you discover the credit card was opened in your name which you did not authorize.
Personal cyber insurance is an essential, affordable solution for home cyber security.
3 reasons you shouldn’t wait to get personal cyber insurance
Adding personal cyber insurance to your home insurance policy is as easy as calling your independent insurance agent. You shouldn’t wait to act because:
Cyber coverage is a low-cost addition to your insurance that offers substantial financial assistance when you need it.
Home cyber protection includes access to tools and resources to reduce your risk to cyberattacks. Practicing smart digital habits online can lessen your risk of becoming a victim of identity theft.
A cyberattack can happen to any person, on any device, at any time. The sooner you add coverage, the sooner you can have peace of mind your identity and devices are protected.
What you can expect from Integrity’s home cyber insurance
Integrity offers personal cyber insurance you can depend on if your identity or a device is compromised. Our home cyber protection includes coverage for:
Computer attacks: removes malware and reprograms computers, tablets, Wi-Fi routers or other internet access points.
Home systems attack: restores devices connected to the internet, including smartphones, thermostats, security monitoring systems and other smart devices.
Cyber extortion: provides professional assistance on how to respond to a ransomware attack and makes payment of ransom when approved.
Online fraud: assists in losses due to identity theft, phishing schemes, illegal bank and credit card transfers, forgery, counterfeit currency and other deceptions.
Data breach: includes forensic IT and legal reviews, as well as notification and recovery services when private non-business data is entrusted to an individual.
This article is for informational and suggestion purposes only. Implementing these suggestions does not guarantee coverage. If any policy coverage descriptions in this article conflict with the language in the policy, the language in the policy applies. For full details on Integrity’s home insurance coverages and discounts, contact your local independent agent.
References: Cyberscout Forbes