Cyber insurance isn’t just about having a policy in place, it’s about being prepared to qualify for one. Increasingly, insurance underwriters aren’t messing around. To get cyber insurance-ready and keep coverage affordable, your clients need to demonstrate a mature security posture with specific controls in place.
That’s where you, the MSP, come in. You’re not just a service provider, you’re the architect of your client’s insurability.
This article explains how to align your security stack with what insurance carriers want to see. It also shares how to turn those requirements into a business opportunity.
Insurers Are Getting Picky. And That’s a Good Thing.
A few years ago, an SMB could check a few boxes, pay a modest premium, and call it a day. But rising claim volumes and million-dollar ransomware payouts have changed the game. Now, underwriters want detailed questionnaires, proof of security controls, and, in some cases, third-party risk assessments.
Paul Guthrie
This trend might frustrate your clients. But it gives MSPs a clear role: help them qualify, stay covered, and reduce their risk (and premiums) over time. “The channel is the frontline of security implementation,” Paul Guthrie, co-founder and managing director of digital insurance broker DataStream, said in a previous interview.
The Must-have Security Controls for Insurability
While every carrier is a little different, a handful of requirements appear across nearly all cyber insurance applications. These are no longer “nice to have.” They’re often make or break for approval.
Your clients must have:
- Multi-factor authentication (MFA), especially on remote access, email, and privileged accounts.
- Endpoint detection and response (EDR), since antivirus is no longer enough.
- Regular data backups with offline or immutable options, tested regularly.
- Security awareness training, including phishing simulations for all users.
- Patch management with timely updates for operating systems and applications.
- An incident response plan as even a basic documented plan can make a difference.
- Remote access controls, such as secure VPNs, no open RDP, and Zero Trust principles, if possible.
Each aligns with common insurance requirements, as well as best practices for MSP service delivery. With so many regulations and compliance guidelines, certain verticals have additional regulations to include in your strategy. Do your homework.
Use the Insurance Conversation to Drive Stack Adoption
Too often, MSPs struggle to get buy-in from clients for upgrading their security tools. However, the cyber insurance conversation provides a compelling business case:
- Clients don’t want to be denied coverage.
- Clients want to avoid premium hikes.
- Clients want to get claims approved quickly if something goes wrong.
Position your stack not as optional add-ons, but as prerequisites for risk transfer. Often, insurance carriers will even ask for a diagram of deployed controls or proof of implementation. That’s your chance to shine.
Make It Repeatable: Your Cyber Insurance Readiness Package
Consider developing a standardized offering that bundles everything clients need to be insurance-ready. This could include:
- A pre-insurance readiness assessment
- Deployment of all core security stack components
- Documentation to support insurance applications
- Annual reviews tied to policy renewals
- Support during claims
You can sell this as a standalone package or bake it into your higher-tier service plans.
Bonus: Help Clients Choose the Right Policy
Of course, you’re not an insurance broker, but you can be a valuable guide. Educate clients on what policies typically cover and what they don’t. Encourage them to read the fine print, and refer them to reputable brokers who understand SMB needs.
Dara Gibson
By demystifying the insurance landscape and preparing clients with the right tools, you move beyond break/fix and even beyond proactive IT. You become a risk management partner.
“With a unique combination of expertise in both cyber insurance and cybersecurity, MSPs can bridge the communication gap between cyber insurance policies and cybersecurity ‘speak,’ and create comprehensible cyber strategies that will enable companies to buy and renew cyber insurance,” said Dara Gibson, CEO and owner of Cybersecurity Readiness Advisors.
Being Insurance-ready Is Now Table Stakes
In today’s threat environment, cyber insurance is not a luxury; it’s a necessity. But no policy will help if your client can’t qualify or gets denied after a breach.
Align your stack to insurer expectations and build processes around insurance-readiness. This way, you protect your clients and elevate your role. In the process, you create recurring revenue streams that grow with every policy renewal.
Next Steps
- Want more helpful guidance on cyber insurance? Check out our Cyber Insurance Answer Center.
- Have a question for our experts? Send it to editors@channelpronetwork.com
Featured image: iStock
