Liability comes in a variety of forms — personal, physical,property, medical, commercial, general and auto just to name afew.

New risks are developing every day, many of which are associatedwith the global economy and technology.

Your insureds depend on you to help them manage and mitigate themany liabilities they face.

Several weeks ago, a series of online attacks on Domain NameServer provider Dyn Inc., blocked access to multiple sites on theEast Coast, including Twitter, Spotify, Netflix, Amazon, Tumblr,Reddit and The New York Times.

The effort came in three waves and spread to sites on bothcoasts later in the day. The attacks used millions of malwareinfected devices, which some sources have identified to beprimarily webcams, to create a high volume of deceptive traffic,preventing access from legitimate users to the sites. Theunprotected internet-connected devices allowed an "internet ofthings" (IoT) botnet to hijack the devices.

The explosion of IoT devices complicates the ability of serviceproviders to protect the vast array of networks. Unsecured devicesmake it easy for hackers to commandeer them for attacks thatdisrupt service for millions.

Business interruption claims

The severity of the attack could lead to business interruptionclaims from Amazon, Netflix, PayPal and other e-commerce sites thatwere impacted. Once liability has been determined, it is alsopossible that some claims could be subrogated.

Hopefully one result of this attack will be to educate internetusers on the importance of device and network security includingthe use of strong passwords, being more cautious when it comes toopening emails and clicking on links within them, and being awareof the risks inherent in IoT devices.

Role of risk management strategies

For insurers, high-profile cyber events provide the opportunityto emphasize the role of risk management strategies such asemployee training, creating a cyber response team, purchasing cyberinsurance policies, and evaluating vulnerabilities before an attackoccurs.

Managing risk in today's technology-driven environment reallydoes take a village — especially because the attacks willcome from so many different directions.

Patricia L. Harman is the editor-in-chief of Claimsmagazine. Contact her at [email protected] or follow heron Twitter @PattiHarman. Opinionsexpressed in this article are the author's own.

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