CYBER RISK INFORMATION FOR THE CPA FIRM

3. Traditional business interruption policies focus on damage caused by fire or flood and do not consider Cyber attacks at all.

4. Cyber-insurance policies require higher premiums and deductibles because of challenges such as lack of quantifiable data on cyber-risk.

5. Depending upon the size of the company and the coverage required, premiums can run into the hundreds of thousands of dollars.

7. Business interruption, income, and expenses - These policies cover a company's loss of revenue and additional expenses caused by DoS attacks, viruses, hackers, and fraud. They may also cover a company's losses incurred as a result of disruption caused by the computer systems of others relied on.

8. Product or service failure - This cyber-coverage covers legal actions attributable to the failure of a product or service.

9. Extortion - Such a policy covers ransom for valuable information.

11. EncryptionMost states have breach notification laws, and nearly all of them waive the requirement for notification where data has been encrypted. Whole disk and USB-stick encryption are the two most common places where encryption can be used. Imagine all of the free press you could get just by having an auditor lose their USB-memory stick.We encourage you to consider this list, as well as additional policies like third-party connection, acceptable use, and incident report, to ensure your firm is adequately protected on all fronts. Above all, make sure your firm actively enforces the policies and standards you establish because, no matter what kind of security you have in place, your firm is only as safe as your weakest line of defense<br />Data loss, ID theft top malpractice concerns!<br /> “We have even seen CPA client information stolen via dumpster diving.quot;
<br />In a rough economy, when liability claims against accountants tend to rise, it's especially critical for CPA firms to know exactly what their policy covers and to make any necessary adjustments. <br />quot;
The hard issue right now is data loss, and every carrier is addressing it differently,” quot;
For example, the American Institute of CPAs program and CPA Gold have both put out a cyber-security endorsement to their policies as a rider. Travelers took a different approach and just made changes to their base policy. Philadelphia has an endorsement which is sold as an additional premium, while some have not addressed the issue but are examining it to determine their position.quot;
<br /> “The issue of data loss is becoming commonplace:” <br />quot;
We're seeing it on a weekly basis with potential claims coming in as a result of stolen laptops, security breaches, and the like. It can result in significant costs to accounting firms just to notify current and past clients when something like this happens believe us the last thing you want is to send out a letter to 3,000 people that they may be victims of a security breach because of you.quot;
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