Skip to main content
The Actuary: The magazine of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries - return to the homepage Logo of The Actuary website
  • Search
  • Visit The Actuary Magazine on Facebook
  • Visit The Actuary Magazine on LinkedIn
  • Visit @TheActuaryMag on Twitter
Visit the website of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries Logo of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries

Main navigation

  • News
  • Features
    • General Features
    • Interviews
    • Students
    • Opinion
  • Topics
  • Knowledge
    • Business Skills
    • Careers
    • Events
    • Predictions by The Actuary
    • Whitepapers
    • Moody's - Climate Risk Insurers series
    • Webinars
    • Podcasts
  • Jobs
  • IFoA
    • CEO Comment
    • IFoA News
    • People & Social News
    • President Comment
  • Archive
Quick links:
  • Home
  • Sections
  • News

Cyber insurance claims to spike following Russia-Ukraine war

Open-access content Wednesday 9th March 2022 — updated 8.09am, Friday 11th March 2022
Cyber insurance claims to spike following Russia-Ukraine conflict

European and North American insurers should expect a spike in cyber insurance claims following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, although these are likely to be manageable for most companies.

That is according to a commentary from DBRS Morningstar, which said that the Russia-Ukraine conflict has already increased the number of cyber incidents, although most remain unsophisticated distributed denial-of-service attacks.

The credit ratings agency highlighted how acts of war are typically excluded from cyber insurance policies, but that attribution remains a key challenge as most cyber warfare is not acknowledged by belligerent state actors.

War exclusions in insurance policies have been updated in the past three years, but insurers and reinsurers are still trying to find a balance between the right coverage and managing accumulation risk.

However, given updated exclusion clauses, reductions in limits, and product diversification, the commentary suggests that claims should remain manageable for most insurance and reinsurance companies.

“Although acts of war (declared or not) are typically excluded from cyber insurance policies, in DBRS Morningstar’s view, the current conflict could potentially increase cyber-related insurance and reinsurance claims in Europe and North America, as attribution can be very difficult to determine in cyber incidents,” said Marcos Alvarez, senior vice president and head of insurance.

“Nevertheless, we expect that insurers and reinsurers will continue to clarify their cyber war exclusions to face the new realities of state-sponsored cyberattacks.”

Meanwhile, a new report from cyber risk analytics expert CyberCube has urged insurers and reinsurers holding large books of East European business to stress test their portfolios against the threat of Russian and Ukrainian cyber attacks.

The range of relevant scenarios include cyber attacks on off-shore oil rigs, utility suppliers, mobile phone network operators, hospitals, airlines, the SWIFT banking system, plus the widespread use of wiper malware.

CyberCube recommends that insurance brokers and risk carriers encourage their clients to focus on threat modelling Russian advanced persistent threats (APTs), known criminal gangs’ tactics, techniques and procedures (TTPs), and cyber security best practices.

William Altman, CyberCube’s principal cyber security consultant, said: “This conflict will undoubtedly push the boundaries of acceptable behaviour in cyberspace. What’s worrying is that the cyber elements of this conflict could escalate quickly. 

“We have the potential for unprecedented cyber-physical impacts, including attacks on critical infrastructure. However, before a full-blown cyber disaster becomes likely, we believe there will be several levels of escalation needed to reach that stage.”
 

Image credit: iStock

Author: Chris Seekings

Filed in
News
Topics
Technology
Reinsurance
Global

You might also like...

Share
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Linked in
  • Mail
  • Print

Latest Jobs

Calling all GI Actuaries looking to move into contracting

England, London
£700 - £1000 per day
Reference
146169

A chance to gain capital modelling experience.

London, England
£70000 - £110000 per annum
Reference
146168

Capital Contractor GI

England, London
£700 - £1000 per day
Reference
146166
See all jobs »
 
 

Today's top reads

 
 

Sign up to our newsletter

News, jobs and updates

Sign up

Subscribe to The Actuary

Receive the print edition straight to your door

Subscribe
Spread-iPad-slantB-june.png

Topics

  • Data Science
  • Investment
  • Risk & ERM
  • Pensions
  • Environment
  • Soft skills
  • General Insurance
  • Regulation Standards
  • Health care
  • Technology
  • Reinsurance
  • Global
  • Life insurance
​
FOLLOW US
The Actuary on LinkedIn
@TheActuaryMag on Twitter
Facebook: The Actuary Magazine
CONTACT US
The Actuary
Tel: (+44) 020 7880 6200
​

IFoA

About IFoA
Become an actuary
IFoA Events
About membership

Information

Privacy Policy
Terms & Conditions
Cookie Policy
Think Green

Get in touch

Contact us
Advertise with us
Subscribe to The Actuary Magazine
Contribute

The Actuary Jobs

Actuarial job search
Pensions jobs
General insurance jobs
Solvency II jobs

© 2023 The Actuary. The Actuary is published on behalf of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries by Redactive Publishing Limited. All rights reserved. Reproduction of any part is not allowed without written permission.

Redactive Media Group Ltd, 71-75 Shelton Street, London WC2H 9JQ