WPS launches ‘telematics for cyber insurance’

WPS Analytics has launched a new cyber insurance rating tool that it has likened to telematics for cyber insurance.

Scott Thomson, head of insurance at WPS, says the new tool, called Cyban, allows insurers to rate cyber insurance on the actual risks facing a company, rather than on the information provided by the company in response to the insurer’s question set.

“Taking out cyber insurance is usually questionnaire-based, but we’ve developed an agent that sits on the company’s infrastructure,” he says. “This constantly scans the network and all connected devices every five minutes. That information is collected over a 24 hour period and is then presented in a dashboard to the insurer.

“This dashboard includes information on every device in the network, including information such as security settings, number of account passwords and what type data is held on those devices, and we then produce a Cyban score for every device. The idea is that before the insurer writes any premium, the insurer looks at this so the premium can be determined by the actual risk.”

Changing risk 

The Cyban App ensures that all application forms are automatically populated from the initial audit results making the process simpler, faster and more accurate, and also means that quotes are driven by risk scores based on hard data.

The technology also allows the Cyban agent to be redeployed to a company throughout the lifetime of a policy, reducing the likelihood of a claim by reducing risk and allowing insurers to check that the policy cover available is still suitable to the level of risk being faced.

“The risk is constantly changing, so we give the policyholder recommendations about what they have to do to lower the risk,” Thomson says. “So in theory, the insurer could rewrite the risk every day, every week or every month. We also give insurers a portfolio view of their risk across all of their products.”

First notification of loss 

Cyban also has the ability to record first notification of loss in the event of a breach.

“When a claim is initiated, it activates additional forensic logging and unlocks historical logs for the insurer’s review,” Thomson says. “This allows the insurer to assess the claim more quickly and with remote access to the necessary data to better judge a claim.

“It also provides the insurer with evidence of activity that breaches the policy in the event of a disputed claim. An automated fraud score supports the decision to refer a claim for investigation, and in the event of suspected fraud, the investigation team can access all data remotely avoiding costly and time consuming onsite data collection.”

And in a move that could add some much needed impetus to the personal lines cyber market, WPS is also in talks with some leading retailers about selling cyber cover direct to consumers when they buy electronics equipment such as laptops.

“We’ve spoken to some leading retail outlets about selling cyber insurance for a couple quid a month every time someone buys a laptop,” Thomson says. “It’s another add-on just like extended warranties.”

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