How can you protect yourself against the next big cyber attack? That’s a question that many consumers and businesses find themselves asking in light of the latest data breaches affecting millions of Americans. In this year alone, companies like Sonic, Whole Foods, Hyatt Hotels, Uber, Equifax, and Verizon have all been subject to data breaches, and Yahoo announced that its 2016 data breach affected more than one billion user accounts. While you may not be able to stop identity thieves from accessing private information completely, you can take steps to protect yourself and your business against the financial fallout of a cyber-crime.
Protect Yourself
As an individual, your financial identity is closely tied to your Social Security number, credit card numbers, and other personal information. If that information is leaked and sold on the dark web, you might find yourself working to defend your good name in perpetuity, as it is not uncommon for personal information to be sold to other criminals multiple times over. All the while, your credit score may plummet as thieves use your credit cards, open financial accounts, and take out loans in your name, leaving you with the bill.
You can protect yourself against the damaging effects of identity theft by making a few simple changes to financial habits. First, you can enroll in a free or paid credit monitoring program that keeps a close eye on your credit report activity and notifies you of any changes as soon as they occur. That way, if you notice activity that appears suspicious, you can report it right away and potentially minimize the effects. You can also put a freeze on your credit to prevent future accounts from being opened in your name.
Identity Theft Insurance
Identity theft insurance is perhaps one of the most effective ways you can protect yourself against the financial consequences of a data breach. You may already have this type of coverage included as a part of your homeowners, renter’s, or condo-owners insurance policy, or you may have purchased the coverage as a stand-alone policy from your independent agent. In either case, identity theft protection can help pay for your out-of-pocket costs associated with restoring your credit and protecting your good name. It will not pay for the fraudulent liabilities created in your name, but it can cover the cost of your lost wages, phone calls, legal fees, travel expenses, and more while you work to set the record straight.
Learn more about protecting yourself from Identify theft.
Protect your Business
If you are a business owner, you face a different type of risk – one that could threaten the continuity of your business. If a virus infects your software or hackers compromise your databases, you could be liable for the punitive and civil damages, not to mention the cost of virus removal and reinforcing your company’s software security protocols. Here at Integrity Insurance Agency, we help protect local Wisconsin businesses with cyber-crime coverage that helps pay for damages related to data breaches, including the cost of legal fees, notifying customers of the breach, website reconstruction, virus removal, and more.
If your business is not insured against data breaches, contact our office to find out more about this important coverage. Typically, insurers require businesses to implement loss prevention measures, cyber security training, security audits, and other protocols to help lower the risk of a potential loss. We can walk you through the process of choosing an insurer and better understanding the requirements of the underwriters.
Learn more about protecting your business from cybertheft with CyberPlus by Cyberfense.
Call us today to request your identity theft or commercial data breach insurance. We also offer a Free online assessment of the current level of cyber-security that exists in business today and provide ideas to help improve any areas of weakness. We look forward to serving you soon.
