Insurers increase premiums due to rising number of cyber incidents

Faced with increasing damage from cyber incidents, insurers are forced to increase their premiums and be stricter in awarding policies, L'Echo reports.

According to insurance broker Vanbreda, one in four cases (27 per cent) of such incidents resulted in a business interruption (with ransom demand) and 12 per cent in a data breach of sensitive personal information.

Businesses are more likely to want to protect themselves against this kind of risk, causing premiums to rise again in 2022, confirms Tom Van Britsom, cyber expert at Vanbreda.

For instance, the volume of premiums collected by Vanbreda for cyber policies rose 30 per cent last year to a total of €13.2 million. But in turn, insurers are more reluctant to cover such risks and are stricter when it comes to insurance conditions.

^{Hacker with anonymous mask © BELGA PHOTO}