As the number of high-profile internet security breaches increases at an alarming rate, Hong Kong will see more interest in so-called cyber insurance products, experts say.
'The market will go from having a handful of cyber insurance solutions on offer to having a multiple of 10 to 20 such insurance products available within the next six to 12 months,' said Murray Wood, the regional managing director in Asia for the financial services and professions group at Aon Risk Solutions.
The company is the global risk-management business unit of London-based Aon, the world's largest reinsurance broker.
'We will see a rash of insurers launching these products, which would acknowledge that the demand for these policies is developing quite quickly,' Wood said.
'There may be at least a dozen insurance companies with such offerings in Hong Kong.'
Some of the most active firms helping to educate the Hong Kong market about the level of network security threats, the consequences of those risks, and the availability of cyber insurance policies include Chubb, one of the largest property and casualty insurers in the United States, and Chartis, which launched its comprehensive cyber-related product line in May.