The new Coalition study revealed that IT security leaders of mid-market companies in the UK are becoming increasingly worried about cyber attacks as financial and other business transactions are now mostly done online.
Conducted earlier this year involving 500 senior cybersecurity officials working at mid-market firms across England, Scotland, and Wales, the report revealed that 87.6% of cyber professionals had experienced a cyber attack in either their current or former roles, demonstrating not only the broad need for cybersecurity investment but also for cyber insurance policies to help transfer the cost of these cyber attacks.
When it comes to respondents’ views on cyber insurance, the report noted that 30.6% of respondents felt that providing the information requested by insurers was challenging, while 25% said insurers lacked cybersecurity expertise. The report also revealed that only 19% – or one in five respondents – said their company had a positive experience with cyber insurance. The study also highlighted that 43.4% of those who were surveyed said that they had insufficient budget to provide adequate protection against cyber threats.
“Our results show that many IT departments currently see cyber insurance as more of a ‘nice to have’ and not as a key pillar in their cyber risk management strategy. The findings also suggest that businesses are underwhelmed with their options and experiences. The message coming across loud and clear is that the UK cyber insurance industry has to be better at engaging with clients,” said Coalition UK head of insurance Tom Draper (pictured above).
He also said that there is a need to bring IT security into the insurance conversation so that insurers and brokers to increase their trust in cyber insurance and see its true value for their companies and clients.
Meanwhile, the independent research organisation Opinion Matters conducted the study on Coalition’s behalf in February 2024. The study sample included 500 500 senior-level IT Security decision-makers working for midsize companies with an annual turnover of £100m–£1bn.
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