Cyber losses are driven by business interruption, recovery costs

“We often hear about high profile sophisticated attacks in the media, but as a whole, the majority of ransomware attacks are not targeted, nor are they technically sophisticated,” said Thomas Kang, North American head of cyber, tech and media at Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty(Credit: Bits and Splits/stock.adobe.com)

The biggest drivers of cyber losses are business interruption and restoration costs, according to Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty (AGCS), which reported that the two accounted for more than half of the value ($885 million) of nearly 3,000 insurance cyber claims.

The average total cost of recovery and downtime following a cyber incident more than doubled during the past year, growing from $761,106 to $1.85 million. Behind many of these claims are ransomware events, which continue to grow in severity and frequency. AGCS reported several factors are propelling these increases, including: