Sizwe Cakwebe, Cyber Risk Manager at SHA Risk Specialists
The risk of cybercrime has increased at an exponential rate over the past year and has emerged as a major threat to the business sector. In response to this growing threat, SHA Risk Specialists has expanded its cyber insurance capabilities with a strategic new appointment, AI investment and tailored new product offering.
This is according to Simon Colman, Business Head, Digital and financial lines at SHA Risk Specialists, who says that the need to create a cutting-edge cyber unit has never been greater. “Cybercrime has become commercialized over the last few years and has accelerated at an incredible rate over the past 12 months alone, it is no longer a question of whether a business will fall victim to cybercrime, but rather when.
“SHA is taking cyber security very seriously, and we believe that the gravity of this risk has been underestimated in the market for far too long. We have seen a 400% increase in our gross written premium over the past 12 months, which is a clear demonstration of the need for cyber insurance but we also acknowledge that the pace of change in cybercrime tactics requires greater focus on technical risk assessment. It’s critical that as specialist insurers we bridge the gap between the provision of insurance solutions and the complex nature of cyber security exposures that policyholders face. It is against this backdrop that our first move in advancing our cyber initiative was to appoint Sizwe Cakwebe as SHA’s cyber risk manager.
Cakwebe brings with him a wealth of experience in the cybersecurity arena, having moved to SHA from his position as senior consultant at Deloitte where he was an integral part of the Risk Advisory – Cyber and Technology Risk team. In this role, he was responsible for executing IT audits, cyber specific projects, governance and resilience related projects across public and private sector clients.
Cakwebe brings a deep level of cyber security knowledge and experience into the team, both from a governance framework, as well as a technical risk assessment perspective. A varied team of skilled underwriting experts support him in his role. “Our cyber offering forms part of our financial lines and digital teams. Both divisions already employ experienced specialist underwriters which Cakwebe will work closely with,” explains Colman.
To further enhance its Cyber offering, SHA is also running a number of trials with Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools to analyze and understand risk exposures for specific industries and sectors, while delivering a more efficient service to customers.
In addition, SHA has introduced a new specialised SME cyber insurance offering that includes a number of tailor-made services for this vulnerable segment of the market that are often hardest hit by cyber criminals. The policy provides the full range of first and third party cyber cover but perhaps more importantly, also includes world class antivirus protection, cyber monitoring tools and important guidance on cybersecurity awareness for companies and their employees.
“The cyber risk landscape is evolving at breakneck speed and is only gaining momentum. We are excited about the changes we have made and welcome Sizwe on board to drive our cyber division forward by improving our underwriting process and structure. This ensures we stay abreast of developing trends in the cyber security environment and are better able to deliver a responsive solution that speaks to client needs,” Colman concludes.
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