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Cyber incident data repository could assist insurers: official

Posted On: Oct. 1, 2015 12:00 AM CST

WASHINGTON — The federal government is making progress in determining how a cyber incident data repository could help meet the information requirements of insurers, according to the official leading the effort.

Speaking in Washington at an event sponsored by Travelers Cos. Inc., Tom Finan, senior cyber security strategist and counsel at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, said that the government began looking at cyber insurance in 2012. Mr. Finan heads Homeland Security’s Cyber Incident Data and Analysis Working Group, which is talking to insurers and other private sector entities about creating the repository. “We’re very excited about our progress,” he said.

He said that insurers say the repository, if done right, could help them provide more insurance and lower rates for companies that take steps to deal with their cyber exposures. A repository could also provide data for more peer-to-peer benchmarking and identify longer term cyber risk trends.

“Our goal is to really advance knowledge,” he said.