ICT provider Vox Telecom has partnered with insurer King Price Insurance, to offer SMEs a cyber protection offering that includes cyber threat mitigation and insurance cover.
The move comes amid a spate of data breaches in the country, with South African companies said to lose R40.2 million, on average, per breach. Reports also show security remains the single biggest concern for African IT decision-makers.
In a statement, the companies say the new offering aims to future-proof SMEs against emerging and existing threats.
“The majority of local companies are running at a huge risk of falling prey to cyber crime, and both the financial and reputational costs of an attack or breach can be crippling for an SME, particularly with POPIA now coming online,” says Jacques du Toit, CEO of Vox.
“Our new offering is designed firstly, to raise awareness of the threats, and secondly, to identify how and where a business is exposed. In today’s high threat online environment, one innocent click on a malicious link can unleash digital disaster for any business.”
According to the statement, the customer’s management or leadership team will gain access to Vox’s cyber security self-service platform and begin the engagement by completing a 50-point cyber risk assessment to determine the company’s current risk profile.
The solution encompasses four key features: a business toolkit, which includes a cyber security health check, a cyber risk dashboard, ready-to-edit templates and security awareness posters; training that incorporates cyber awareness courses; simulated attacks − based on real-world incidents – to test, measure and fix the effectiveness of the training; and a reporting dashboard to generate actionable reports and identify risk areas.
In terms of the insurance aspect of the offer, businesses will be insured against financial loss, disruption and reputational damage that result from cyber attacks.
It also covers software and data, and protects against liability arising from the misuse of, and third-party attacks on, IT infrastructure. This includes data breach expenses, extra costs and loss of income as a result of insured incidents.
“This is a very important and significant product offering, particularly given the heightened threat levels for SMEs right now – and the growing cyber risks associated with employees working from home,” says Minnaar Fourie, commercial director at King Price.
“By partnering with an agile and innovative technology leader in Vox, we can now offer customers a highly comprehensive cyber product that includes both cyber threat mitigation and insurance cover. This partnership also strongly aligns with our strategy of mitigating risk prior to claims.”
Du Toit adds: “This offering is not only designed to insure against a massive threat for SMEs, but it also ensures the ongoing education of leaders and employees around cyber threats.”
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