Cyber Insurance Readiness
Every answer on your cyber insurance application true, with the proof behind it, this year and every year after. It starts with thirty minutes and the form.
Cyber insurance requirements in Orlando, Tampa, St. Petersburg, and Miami.
The form asks for proof
Every cyber insurance application asks the same things now. Is every account protected with a second step at sign-in. Is every computer watched for attacks, by people, around the clock. Are backups separate from the systems they protect, and have you tested a restore. Are your people trained. Is email checked before it is opened. Are admin rights limited. Is a change to wire instructions verified by phone before money moves.
It wants proof of things you have never had to prove. If the first thought is "this is a pain, and I do not know what half of it means," you are in good company. Most owners feel exactly that, a few weeks from the deadline.
Why carriers ask
Insurers paid heavily for ransomware and email fraud over the last few years, and the same few gaps kept showing up in the claims. The questions on the application are the safeguards that would have prevented them, the same way a home insurer asks about the roof and the smoke detectors. It is not a test of you. But how you answer matters.
What your answers decide
- A solid answer. Coverage that pays when you need it, better terms at renewal, and a business that is genuinely harder to attack.
- "No" or "not sure." A higher premium, narrower coverage such as a smaller ransomware limit, or a carrier that will not renew.
- A wrong "yes." The application is a signed statement. If an answer turns out to be untrue after an incident, the claim can be denied, and you paid for a policy that does not protect you.
Nobody plans to sign something that is not true. It happens one "probably" at a time.
So we built a service around it
Cyber Insurance Readiness is three steps, each one leading to the next.
- Review. Thirty minutes with the application, or just your renewal date, at no charge. You leave with a short written list: what is true today, what is not, what can be fixed by your deadline, and how to answer honestly in the meantime.
- Ready. We put the missing safeguards in place, gather the proof, and sit with you to answer the application, alongside your broker and your current IT provider if you have one. Quoted before the work starts. Usually weeks, not months.
- Keep it true. The safeguards keep running, the proof is refreshed through the year, and the next renewal takes minutes instead of weeks. For a Concierge IT client this step is simply part of the plan.
You can stop after Ready, with the application answered and the proof in your hands. Most businesses keep going, because the third step is what makes next year easy.
What you get: the proof file
One document behind every answer, kept together and kept current:
- the sign-in protection report
- monitoring coverage: who watches, and when
- the latest backup restore test
- update and encryption status for every computer and phone
- training completion records
- the admin account review
- a written breach plan
- a payment-verification procedure
It is what you hand the carrier if they ask, what you show an auditor or a large client, and what is already there if you ever have to make a claim. The last two we write with you. The rest come from the systems that are already running.
Who it is for
- A renewal is coming and the form asks for things you cannot show.
- The premium jumped, or coverage got cut.
- It is a first application, or a new carrier.
- A client, a lender, or a contract now requires coverage.
Medical practices see the same questions on a HIPAA review, so one set of evidence often answers both. Construction firms meet the wire question first, because fake-invoice and payment-change fraud is the most common claim in the trade.
How it starts
Send us the application, or just the renewal date. No preparation needed. Thirty minutes later you have the written list, and you decide what happens next. Reach out, any way you like. A real person takes it from there.
Also under Security: Compliance Security training Email security Encrypted email
Questions people ask
Plain answers.
Can you fill out our cyber insurance application?
Yes, with you. That is the second step of Readiness: the safeguards in place, the proof gathered, and each question answered with what is actually running.
What if we cannot answer yes to a question on the application?
We say so, fix it, and then answer. A wrong answer on a cyber insurance application is worse than a late one, because it can void the policy on the day you need it.
What does Readiness cost?
The Review is at no charge. Ready is quoted before the work starts. For a Concierge IT client, keeping it true is part of the plan.
Can we stop after the fixes?
Yes. Readiness ends with the application answered and the proof file in your hands. Most businesses keep going, because the third step is what makes next year take minutes.
What is the proof file?
One document behind every answer on the application: the sign-in protection report, monitoring coverage, the latest restore test, update and encryption status, training records, the admin review, a written breach plan, and a payment-verification procedure. Kept together and kept current.
How long does Ready take?
Usually weeks, not months. Some things, like a second step at sign-in, can be in place in days.
Do we have to replace our current IT provider?
No. Readiness works alongside them, and the proof file is theirs to keep up afterward if you prefer. If you would rather keep them and add us for good, co-managed IT is how that works.
Why is our insurer suddenly asking about all this?
Carriers paid heavily for ransomware and email fraud over the last few years. The questions on the application are the safeguards that would have prevented those claims.
How often does cyber insurance renew?
Usually once a year. Most policies run for twelve months, and each renewal comes with a new application. The questions often change from one year to the next, because carriers add whatever caused last year's claims.
Does everyone renew at the same time?
No. The renewal date is the anniversary of the day the policy started, so every business has its own. It is on the declarations page of the current policy, or your broker knows it. Most brokers start the renewal 60 to 90 days ahead, which is the best time to start Readiness too.
When should we start on the application?
Two to three months before the renewal date. That leaves time for Ready before you answer, rather than guessing under a deadline.
Do we need cyber liability insurance at all?
For most businesses no law requires it, but the businesses you work for often write it into contracts, lenders and landlords sometimes ask for it, and government work may require it. It also covers what a general liability policy usually does not: the cost of a breach or a ransomware attack, including recovery, notifying the people affected, and the legal work after. Whether you need it is a question for your broker. Making sure it pays when you need it is what Readiness is for.
What counts as proof?
Reports, screenshots, written policies, training records, and restore-test logs: things you can hand over if asked. That is what the proof file holds.
Will this lower our cyber insurance premium?
Often. Carriers price on the controls the application asks about, and Readiness makes the answers yes because the controls are running. Nobody can promise a number; your broker can quote one.
Do you sell insurance, or work with our broker?
Protected Trust does not sell insurance. We work alongside the broker you already have, and what is on this page is general information, not insurance or legal advice.
Is this the same as HIPAA or FTC Safeguards?
They overlap heavily. The same controls and the same proof file often answer the insurance application, a HIPAA risk analysis, and the FTC Safeguards Rule at once.
We are not a client and the renewal is due in two weeks. Can you help?
Reach out. The Review happens this week, and the list tells you honestly what can be done by the deadline.
Let's talk
Thirty minutes with a real person.
Tell us what's going on with your technology, what's working and what isn't. We'll listen, ask a few questions, and tell you honestly whether we're the right fit. No slides, no pitch. If we can help, we'll say how. If we can't, we'll point you to someone who can.
Reach out, any way you like. A real person takes it from there.
Based in downtown Winter Haven since 1996, with offices in Orlando, Tampa, St. Petersburg, and Miami, serving businesses across Florida.