AIG and Marsh support UK cyber scheme

American International Group, Marsh, Swiss Re, BIBA and the International Underwriting Association are supporting a UK government scheme aimed at encouraging businesses to protect themselves against cyber threats.

The scheme, Cyber Essentials, went live on June 5, 2014 following its introduction by the government in April 2014.

The award will allow business to show consumers that they have measures in place to help defend against common cyber threats, such as the recent GOZeuS and CryptoLocker malware attacks.

Until now, there had been no single recognised cybersecurity assurance certification suitable for all businesses to adopt.

The scheme is a key objective of the government’s national cyber security strategy and is being delivered as part of the government’s £860 million national cyber security programme.

From October 1, 2014, government will require all suppliers bidding for certain personal and sensitive information handling contracts to be Cyber Essentials certified.

Jamie Bouloux, cyber liability underwriting manager of AIG, said: “AIG is pleased to support the Cyber Essentials Scheme, which provides an effective way for organisations to manage essential cybersecurity risks.

“As part of our commitment to the programme, we will incorporate Cyber Essentials into our risk assessment process for new cyber insurance policies, offering preferential rates to those prospective AIG clients who have obtained a Cyber Essentials Certificate as part of our commitment to superior cyber hygiene and overall cyber risk management.”

Mark Weil, chief executive of Marsh UK and Ireland, said: “As a global leader in insurance broking and risk management, Marsh designs and delivers solutions that enable companies to protect themselves against cyber risks. We welcome this new government initiative to improve security practice to an accredited standard and believe it will make insurance more attainable for UK businesses.”