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Image: Tom Allen / Computing
Five years ago carriers thought of cyber insurance as “stealing candy from babies” - but they were totally unprepared for how the market has changed.
Back in the mid-2010s, most cyber-attacks were against international, enterprise-scale firms. The mid-market, firms worth up to about $20 million, was not a big target.
That made it easy for these companies to get cyber insurance: it was low cost, with very little underwriting. Adoption was low, but the process was simple and easy.
It was a golden age for insurance carriers, who thought of cyber insurance as "like stealing candy from babies," said Wes Spencer of FifthWall Solutions, opening the MES IT Security conference in Indianapolis this week, which Computing attended as a partner.
"If you want insurance, you're going to get it," is how he characterised the market at the time.
