Cyber-Liability Insurance for Churches

It’s not difficult to think of large companies who have made national headlines in recent years regarding a significant breach of their private client data. Not only did these companies have to notify all of their clients, they were also required by law to pay for the identity recovery and monitoring services charges incurred by each and every client. They had to pay restitution and also incurred the additional expenses of re-vamping their entire computer network security system. The same exposure and the costs associated with it face your church today.

A typical general liability policy has built in exclusions for electronic data issues.  Cyber liability coverage, also known as Data Breach coverage, is specifically designed to fill this gap for your church.

Most churches keep a data base of names and addresses of parishioners for simple mailings, however the complexity of these data bases are growing each year. Financial information, even bank specific information involved in the tracking of parishioner giving can now be part of these databases. Electronic copies of driver’s licenses for volunteers who drive church vehicles and even motor vehicle reports can also become part of the files. Medical records and medical insurance information may be collected for those involved in church mission trips. Employee and volunteer vetting often includes sensitive data such as background checks, dates of birth, social security numbers, previous addresses, previous employers and driver’s license numbers, and it is often stored electronically.

A typical general liability policy has built in exclusions for electronic data issues.  Cyber liability coverage, also known as Data Breach coverage, is specifically designed to fill this gap for your church.