Cyber Risk and Insurance Solutions for the Real Estate Industry

Cyber incidents are increasing in both volume and severity across all business sectors with the number of cyber threats seen in the first half of 2020 exceeding all of 2019[1]; the real estate industry being no less immune to cyber threats than any other.

The use of digital platforms for every day operations in the Real Estate industry has increased in the past few years, completely transforming the traditional home buying and renting experience.  The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the need to adopt and rely upon technology to support business operations.

Cyber Risks Identified in the Real Estate industry

There are numerous cyber risks for the Real Estate Industry. We've identified some of the most common cyber risks, and how these could effect those operating in the industry:

• Highly susceptible to social engineering and invoice fraud scams
• Hold significant amount of personally identifiable information – possibly exploited for identity fraud
• Reliance on a digital supply chain
• Potential for reputational harm and brand damage
• Breach of customer information could lead to further coordinated attacks

In this article, it covers the cyber exposures most frequently seen in the real estate industry both here in New Zealand and across the globe. We also touch on ways Cyber insurance can ‘fill-the-gap’ and provide critical protection for direct loss and liability arising out of this increased reliance on technology.

Read the full article and please reach out to our dedicated Real Estate or Cyber Risk team for more information.

[1] Vijayan, J.(2020, September 15).More Cyberattacks in the First Half of 2020 Than in All of 2019.Retrieved from https://www.darkreading.com/attacks-breaches/more-cyberattacks-in-the-first-half-of-2020-than-in-all-of-2019/d/d-id/1338926