Six in Ten Companies are Still Not Buying Cyber Insurance, Survey Finds

Many businesses across North America and Europe remain skeptical about buying cyber insurance, according to a new survey from the global IT marketplace Spiceworks.

While 62 percent of organizations surveyed do not currently have cyber coverage, the number of firms that do has been rising recently. Nearly half of the companies with cyber insurance have had a policy for less than two years.

Most organizations, 71 percent, say they buy cyber coverage as a precaution, while 44 percent view it as part of their greater focus on cybersecurity, according to the findings.

On his company’s motivations for carrying cyber insurance coverage, Spiceworks Community member Bill Mack said, “I have to be right 100% of the time to prevent a breach. The hackers only have to be right once to take it all away.”

According to a separate Spiceworks poll, 12 percent of organizations without a cyber insurance plan to purchase coverage within the next two years.

The survey found the top reason businesses don’t carry cyber insurance is because it’s not a priority at their organization (41 percent). Another 40 percent of organizations cited a lack of budget, while 36 percent indicated a lack of knowledge about cyber insurance, and 33 percent surveyed do not see how they benefit.

Cyber insurance can help organizations pick up the pieces after a security incident and can help mitigate risk by offsetting recovery costs.

The Spiceworks survey was conducted in December 2018 and included 581 respondents from organizations across North America andEurope.