Ransomware: A Darwinian Opportunity for Cyber Insurance

Abstract

Darwin’s survival of the fittest theory maintains that an organism's ability to adapt to changes in its environment and adjust accordingly over time determines its survival success. This process of adaptation at the heart of Darwinism is apropos for the cyber insurance industry amidst the selective pressures introduced by ransomware (RW) incidents and claims. This paper proffers adaptations to the changes wrought by ransomware in order to increase cyber insurance resiliency to this peril and prevent coverage extinction. These adaptations exist on a spectrum of controllability and speed of impact, including: risk management guidance, mandatory ransomware incident disclosure regulation, security controls failure reporting, infosec prevention and mitigation controls incentives, data-driven risk models, and cyber extortion policy reform.

Keywords: cyber risk, cyber insurance, ransomware, cyber security