Insurers that offer coverage for cyberattacks find themselves playing both offense and defense lately. As they await possible action by Congress to enact federal cybersecurity legislation, the insurance industry has gone on the offensive, applying pressure to policyholders to adopt stricter security practices as an express condition of receiving cyber insurance coverage that includes protection against cyberattacks. At the same time, the insurance industry itself has regularly been the target of cybercrime attempts in recent months. That worrisome trend has sparked concerns that hackers could do serious damage to both insurers and policyholders — by stealing, and threatening to disclose, details of insureds’ policies, or by targeting companies based on the extent of their cyber insurance coverage.
