Former DHS Chief Ridge Introduces Cyber Solutions
First U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge Partners with Five Lloyd’s Syndicates to Offer ‘Intelligent’ Cyber Insurance. Ridge Insurance Solutions Company to close dangerous cyber insurance gap by providing informed-assessment capabilities and insurance.
Companies struggling to protect their assets and brands from the growing scourge of cyber attacks can now access a new product designed specifically for their needs, created by a trusted former national security leader and the world’s premier insurance brand. The Honorable Tom Ridge, in London today meeting with leading cyber Lloyd’s Syndicates, today announced the launch of Ridge Insurance Solutions Company, offering best-in-class informed assessment and cyber insurance. The packaged, customized assessment capabilities and insurance enable C-suite executives to mitigate cyber risk, thereby closing a dangerous cyber insurance gap that often leaves companies – particularly small- and mid-cap firms – vulnerable to the consequences of proliferating attacks.
Boards of directors for financial services, retail, healthcare and energy companies, among others, now will have access to unique cyber insurance that leverages real intelligence that is sector and company specific, rejecting the ‘cookie-cutter,’ process-oriented approach inherent in most cyber insurance offerings today. Policies of up to $50 million (USD) each are available beginning immediately.
“Insurance need not be just a ‘policy’ written by an agent, but a true focal point for assessing, identifying and correcting the impact of cyber risk on your business,” said Gov. Ridge, the first
U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security, 43rd Governor of Pennsylvania and Chairman of Ridge Insurance Solutions Company. “This is not just about insurance but helping and incentivizing
companies to manage their cyber operations more effectively.”
As a twice-elected Governor of Pennsylvania committed to economic development and job creation, Gov. Ridge understands the unique challenges faced by small- to mid-cap companies
who don't have access to the same resources as their larger competitors and whose intellectual property is their prized possession. Just one cyber incursion could prove devastating to a
business that size. It's why he chose to create a cyber insurance offering specifically designed for businesses whose market capitalization is less than $500 million, which represents 80% of
all U.S. publicly quoted companies.
“We will certainly work with larger companies, but small- to mid-cap companies drive employment in America and around the world,” said Gov. Ridge. “They drive innovation, entrepreneurship and creativity. Working together with the Lloyd’s syndicates, we have developed a cyber insurance product uniquely designed to help that class of business – to better protect unsuspecting customers from hackers and help ensure that these job creators have an opportunity to flourish and grow.”
Financial analysts expect businesses around the world to spend a combined $30 billion this year on cyber-security. According to the Center for Strategic and International Studies (June 2014) 3,000 U.S. companies were hacked in 2013 and the cost of cyber crime is in excess of $445 billion annually to the global economy.
