Do Individuals Need Personal Cyber Insurance?

Cyber crimes against individuals, such as online banking and shopping compromise, were among the most common reports made in 2021-22 to the Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC). That’s according to its annual Cyber Threat Report, released in November 2022.

The most common cyber risks to individuals

The ACSC says the main cyber risks to individuals include:

• Crypto mining
• Data spill
• Denial of service
• Hacking
• Identity theft
• Malicious outsiders
• Malware
• Phishing – scam emails
• Ransomware
• Scams
• Personal data being stolen
• Web shell malware.

You can find out more about each of these here.

The ACSC report found that up to 200,000 small office/home office routers in Australia were vulnerable to compromise, including by state actors. This is a way that foreign intelligence services can enter your network – and those to whom you connect – to spy or engage in intellectual property theft. Research shows that almost half of the individuals working from home fall for a phishing attack.

It’s worth spelling out that cyber criminals can use your computers, phones, smart home devices and gaming systems as entry points.

Cyber event responses

Follow these ACSC tips to secure your devices and accounts and reduce your risks. One key strategy is to patch or mitigate critical vulnerabilities within 48 hours and ensure automatic updates on your devices and apps.

Individuals and families can learn for free from this ACSC website page about minimising risks, including a quiz on this one. Be sure to report cyber crimes and cyber security incidents to the centre. Sign up for the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission’s scam alerts. And find out more from Deloitte about the risks of being ‘Zoom bombed’.

But how should you respond if you are a victim of cyber crime?

An Australian Institute of Criminology (AIC) report found an incongruity between people’s perception and the risks of cyber crime. They might be aware of the risks, but that doesn’t necessarily translate into taking action. The AIC report also showed that some individuals expect the police to “be able to fix it all, so they don’t take any responsibility for themselves staying safe online”.

Adopting the above measures and considering personal cyber insurance could be a good fit for you.

What does cyber insurance cover?

Australians have only had access to stand-alone personal cyber insurance policies since August 2020. Family coverage is now also available.

Personal cyber protection insurance covers the impact of cyber incidents and cyber crime, including:

• Hacking, malware, and viruses, such as for data breach coverage
• Personal cyber crime, and
• Identity theft, including leading to online fraud
• Cyber bullying
• Cyber extortion – such as ransomware
• Cyber stalking
• Cyber harassment.

With personal cyber insurance, you can opt to have access to fraud specialists to help you through the process of recovery and resolution. Other options include active cyber monitoring, replacing/repairing electronic data or retrieving and replacing or recreating personal identification or financial documents.

Insurance exclusions

Cyber insurance is not set and forget ,though. As well, it does not cover:

• Fraudulent, malicious, or intentional acts of certain people committed by the insured or with their knowledge or consent

• Business activities nor liabilities.

We can keep you updated on exclusions and inclusions to help you review your policy for your current operations. We can guide you on levels of coverage limits, depending on your eligibility.