Cyber Insurance: Your Protection Against Cybercrime.

These days, if you are online, you are at risk!

Your personal information and data is constantly growing in value. There’s always someone out there who wants it, and often for nefarious reasons. You need to make sure you’re covered, should anything unfortunate happen to you and your personal data.

Things like strong passwords can help protect you from cyberattacks. But, unfortunately, you’ll never be completely safe.

Cyber Insurance from Bidvest Insurance has you covered for:

  • Cybertheft.
  • Cyberbullying.
  • Cyber Liability.
  • Cyber Deception.
  • Device Restoration.
  • Anti-Virus Software.
  • IT Helpline.

Complete the form to get Cyber Insurance from Bidvest Insurance.

Complete the form to get a quote.

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What does Cyber Insurance cover?

Cyber Insurance from Bidvest Insurance protects you from cyberattacks. You’re covered for:

Cyber Theft

If you’re a victim of cybertheft and your money has been stolen, we will reimburse you.

Cyberbullying

We provide legal advice and meditation should you find yourself a victim of cyberbullying.

Cyber Liability

Have you been accused of causing a cyberthreat? We provide you with legal assistance.

Cyber Deception

If you fall victim to cyber deception or a cyber scam, we’ll ensure you’re not left out of pocket.

Device Restoration

If your device has been hacked, we’ll help you restore your device and prevent any further loss.

Anti-Virus Software

We provide you with state of the art Anti-Virus Software to protect you against a cyberattack.

IT Helpline

You get telephonic assistance for general IT issues whenever you need help.

Why do I need Cyber Insurance?

Cybercrime is becoming a massive problem in South Africa. You need Cyber Insurance to protect yourself from cybercriminals.

Cyberattacks can have significant financial and legal consequences for victims. While things like strong passwords can help prevent cyberattacks, you can never really be safe online.

You need to take the necessary steps to protect yourself from cybercriminals who want to take advantage of you. Don’t let a cyberattack put you at risk. Without Cyber Insurance, you could face a devastating financial loss.

Did you know?

 

  • There are over 13,000 cyberattacks daily in South Africa.
  • In 2020 we saw a 1,000% increase in cyber attacks.
  • Financial effect on victims of cybercrime on average is over R9,000.
  • South Africa has the 4th highest rate of cyberbullying in the world!
  • South Africa has the 3rd highest number of cybercrime victims worldwide!
Bidvest Insurance Cyber Rescue: cyber insurance for your personal devices.

Frequently Asked Questions

How can I reduce my risk to a cyber attack?

Here are our recommended online safety tips for you:

  • Don’t click on links in SMS messages from unknown senders, especially if you haven’t subscribed to any services or filled in your contact number on a website or social media form.
  • Don’t open emails from unknown senders.
  • If you do open an email that looks legitimately to be from a business, like your bank, but it asks for any personal information like credit card details, your ID number, or your bank account details, mark it as spam. You can always make direct calls or go into a bank to verify if your banker needs any information, and why this might be.
  • If you can see that a website is not secure, try to avoid browsing it. Secure websites will have “https” in the full website link. Unsecure websites will have “http” instead. If you absolutely must access unsecure sites, then make sure that you have an antivirus software on your machine, and that you don’t input your personal information anywhere on the website (HINT: our Cyber Rescue subscription includes FREE antivirus software for all your devices).
  • Log out of your mobile apps or use your thumbprint/facial recognition features to log back in when necessary.
  • Manage your location settings with care, and only switch it on for essential apps, when necessary.
  • Don’t share your passwords or your pin numbers, your physical address or your ID number without first being able to triple-check and verify the institution you’re giving it to, and the reason why.
  • Don’t answer calls from private or hidden numbers, and end suspicious calls immediately (block the number from your device if it’s visible).
  • Change your passwords and check your back-up security regularly, like your two-factor authentication, security questions and recovery account details.
  • Don’t play ‘get to know me’ social media games that involve copying and pasting personal information about yourself – often these are related to your device and account passwords and security questions!

What is cyberbullying?

We at Bidvest Insurance define cyber bullying as a form of harassment conducted using electronic means. This includes invasion, infringement or interference with your rights of privacy or publicity, which consists of being portrayed in a false light, unauthorised public disclosure of private information or intrusion as a result of cyber harassment.

What should I do if myself or a loved one is a victim of cyberbullying?

Just like bullying in person: victims appreciate having friends who understand, and take action to protect them. Do the right thing by at least reaching out to support the victim, and offering to be present through the process of taking action, whether that means accompanying him/her to the local police department or encouraging the use of the IT Helpline, if he/she is a Cyber Rescue client. If you’re a parent and the ‘someone else’ who’s being bullied is your child, it can be a very delicate situation, so here’s our advice:

  • Of course we recommend getting Cyber Rescue so that you have a dedicated IT Helpline on call, for such situations. You can call for help and advice on your child being cyber bullied through a personal device.
  • First do no harm. If your child is already being bullied online, taking a hard or stern approach is likely to increase his/her anxiety, which is the opposite of what you’re trying to achieve.
  • Have compassion. Before launching into an emergency response plan, show your child compassion. A long hug or embrace can work wonders, and inviting your child to talk about the issue can help him/her vent, too. This brings us to our next point…
  • Be considerate and patient when asking questions. It’s good to get information, but remember that your child could have a bruised sense of self esteem so tread carefully. Accept and respect when he/she feels uncomfortable with talking about something and offer support by either allowing him/her to speak to a therapist about it or jump onto a call with the IT Helpline if you have Cyber Rescue – sometimes an independent listener is all a young mind is looking for.
  • Suspend judgement. Sometimes it’s hard for children to talk about cyber bullying with parents because they assume that they’ve triggered the bullying and that parents will chide them for the trigger instead of helping them solve the actual problem of cyber bullying.
  • Get down to your child’s level. Use vocabulary and analogies that you know your child will understand, and break things down into manageable chunks of conversation to avoid your child being overwhelmed. If you need to break up the conversation over a few days, do that, but make sure that your child is not in any physical danger first – this should always be your priority.
  • Know what to report, to whom, and when. Legally and ethically, if your child is being cyber bullied and the nature of the activity is extreme or threatening physical harm or violence, you’re obligated to report the matter to authorities. This may be challenging if your child is so petrified of the cyber bully that he/she insists this isn’t an option, but it’s a must: it’s the right way to respond so that your child and your family can be protected. If you’re unsure of who to speak to about such matters, it’s worth getting Cyber Rescue so that you can always start by contacting the IT Helpline for further advice on reporting cyber bullying.
  • Accrue evidence. Open and healthy communication in a family setting is important, but in terms of cyber bullying it also helps if your profile is connected to your child’s, be it on email or social media. This way you can take screenshots to be used as evidence of cyber bullying.
  • Teach your child that he/she has the right to stop responding to messages and/or comments that appear as acts of cyber bullying.
  • Be mindful of your own conduct online, and that your own children may be impacted by any actions you take to cyber bully other people. Leading by example is one of the most effective ways to prevent cyber bullying from taking hold of your child’s life.
  • Address difficult subjects in the family setting, such as blackmail, sexting and other behaviours associated with cyber bullying, as we mentioned earlier in this article.
  • Talk about technology as a family, and new features that get introduced. This is a great opportunity to educate your child and yourself about privacy settings, rights and responsibilities all associated with managing an online presence.

What should I do if my Facebook account has been hacked?

  1. Immediately change your password.
  2. Use your account settings to log out of all other devices.
  3. Activate two-factor authentication if you haven’t already done so, and check that the correct method is selected for authentication.
  4. Check your account to see if everything is still in place, or if information is missing. There may be new message threads and conversations that you didn’t initiate, which prove that you’ve been hacked and that someone is trying to use your account as part of a scam.
  5. Report your suspicions or proof to the platform provider, whether that’s your email provider or the social media platform, eg. Facebook or Twitter Support etc..
  6. If you’re a BIdvest Insurance Cyber Rescue client, you can call the dedicated IT Helpline for further support. If you’re not, your platform provider may require more detailed information from you, which you usually need to submit through a Chat thread with their Support team.
  7. Follow the recommendations and/or instructions as received by the Bidvest Insurance Cyber Rescue IT Helpline or the platform provider. This may involve making contact with other authorities, like your bank or your local police station, for further instructions or to open a case of fraud, based on the information you have available at this point.

What is cyber liability?

A more common insurance term is ‘third party liability’, which relates to cyber liability. We at Bidvest Insurance define cyber liability specifically as your liability for a financial loss suffered by a third party directly as a result of a virus or cyber attack that has originated from your device or account.

Underwritten by Bidvest Insurance Limited, a licensed insurer and an authorised Financial Services Provider, FSP 46395. Please refer to the policy wording for full details of product cover.