Live Insurance News

Dark Overlord may prove to be the insurance industry’s biggest threat

January 8, 2019January 9, 2019 Marc

Dark Overlord - Insurance Industy - Cyber attack

Cyber threats pose a nearly immeasurable risk to an industry based on stored private information. Dark Overlord is the name of an individual or group behind what may be a massive cyberattack on insurance companies. Dark Overlord claims to have stolen files connected with the insurance filings made as a result of the terror attacks of September 11, 2001. If this is the case, Dark Overlord may have achieved the largest ever hack into the insurance industry. According to a Forbes report, Dark Overlord is seeking Bitcoin payments in exchange…

Marriott data breach costly despite cybersecurity insurance coverage

December 3, 2018December 1, 2018 Nordstrom

The massive hotel chain’s cyberattack could affect as many as 500 million of its customers. The Marriott data breach is now believed to affect as many as 500 million of its customers. The hotel giant is protected by cybersecurity insurance, but the cost of the cyberattack’s cost could be in the billions over coming years. These types of mega-breaches are becoming more commonplace and more costly all around. Based on data from other similarly sized breaches, the Marriott data breach will come with a multi-billion dollar price tag over the…

Health insurance is among the top three forms of robocall scams

November 20, 2018November 18, 2018 Logan B.

robocall scams - health insurance phone scams

A recent study identified the most common types of fraud involving automated telephone solicitation. Robocall scams are becoming increasingly problematic, particularly as our phones are with us everywhere these days, not just at home. New research from an Arkansas-based call management firm looked into the most common types of these automated phone scams. These phone scams are designed to trick people into handing over money or identity information. The First Orion robocall scams study showed that health insurance, Amazon, student loans and free vacations are among the main subjects of…

Canadian insurance officials issue recommendations regarding self-driving cars

November 19, 2018November 18, 2018 Julie Campbell

The Insurance Bureau of Canada is looking at the future of automated vehicles directly in the face. The Insurance Bureau of Canada (I.B.C.) has issued recommendations regarding self-driving cars and their impact on the industry. The I.B.C. recently released a position paper in which it addressed the issue of automated vehicles. The I.B.C.’s paper was titled, “Auto Insurance for Automated Vehicles: Preparing for the Future of Mobility.” This focus on self-driving cars was published during the bureau’s annual Regulatory Affairs Symposium. The paper looked into the auto insurance industry and…

Google buys minority stake in insurance agency software provider, Applied Systems

October 19, 2018October 17, 2018 G. Turner

The purchase was made through CapitalG, Alphabet’s growth equity investment fund. Google has purchased a minority stake in a company called Applied Systems, which provides insurance agency software, cloud based software and other tech for independent agencies. CapitalG was also the investment firm behind the funding for Airbnb, Lyft, SurveyMonkey and Zscaler. CapitalG is the growth equity investment fund at Alphabet, Google’s parent company. As of the time of the writing of this article, neither CapitalG nor Applied Systems have disclosed any of the financial details of the deal. That…