Forensic & Legal Expense Coverage

Imagine for a moment that it’s a Wednesday morning, and you have a mountain of tasks waiting for you to complete at the office. You decide to get a jump on the day and get into the office early. When you arrive, you are greeted with the fact that your organization has become the victim of a cyber-attack. Computers are locked, files are encrypted, and the data of your clients/members have been stolen. To make matters worse, you are being asked to release $20,000 of bitcoin in order to regain access.

What would you do? Do you know where to start and who to contact? This is where your Forensics & Legal Expense Coverage comes into play. 

If you have a robust cyber policy, you will generally have a “breach coach” at your disposal. The first thing your breach coach will likely do is send in a forensics team to determine the cause and extent of the breach. This is helpful because it is often difficult to know how much information has been compromised. Also, knowing what caused the breach can help you prevent a similar breach in the future. The forensics team will be able to determine whether it is necessary to pay a ransom and will identify any compliance issues, which supports the legal team in case any regulatory fines are levied against your organization. 

Your breach coach will work in conjunction with your forensics team to get you back to work quickly, helping you minimize direct and indirect costs, and navigate the potential legal and compliance issues that may come up as a result of the breach. 

If your risk management program does not currently include a robust cyber policy that includes forensic and legal expense coverage, talk to your independent agent about taking this important step today.