Economic risks, cybersecurity threats among D&O concerns: Report

Recession and other economic risks are a major concern in terms of directors and officers liability insurance, Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty said in a report released Tuesday.

“The likelihood that a public company will be sued in a securities class action increases when financial performance is poor and a company’s share price drops. 

“In such a scenario investors might argue that the company failed to disclose the challenges it was facing to maintain its earnings guidance,” the report said.

Cybersecurity is another concern, according to the report. Whether ransomware, supply chain or data breach incidents, companies “face an evolving landscape of cybersecurity threats,” so “it is little wonder that investors increasingly view cybersecurity risk management as a critical component of a company board’s risk oversight responsibilities,” it said.

As board fiduciaries, “board members are therefore expected to develop and maintain accountabilities for cybersecurity before, during and after any cyber incident,” the report said.

“Around the world, directors have already been called to account, including in derivative and direct litigation, due to their alleged failures to institute appropriate corporate governance to protect against cybersecurity risk,” the report said.

Other issues highlighted in the report include environmental, social and governance disclosures and exposures; U.S. class action securities litigation and antitrust and competition risks.