59% of insurance sector breaches caused by third-party attacks.

NEW YORK – February 6, 2025 – SecurityScorecard today released research showing that 59% of breaches among the top 150 insurance companies involved third-party attack vectors, exposing critical vulnerabilities in the sector’s supply chain. These findings underscore the systemic risks posed by cyber threats to an industry responsible for safeguarding sensitive financial and personal information.

The insurance industry’s interconnected network of carriers and reinsurers to brokers, claims processors, and specialized IT providers is essential for delivering services to hundreds of millions but also introduces significant cyber risks.

Andrew Correll, Senior Director of Cyber Insurability, said: “Insurance companies’ reliance on technology to manage daily operations has outpaced their ability to secure it. Cyber risks don’t stop at the first layer of defense — they extend deep into the supply chain, where vulnerabilities are harder to detect and even harder to mitigate. Addressing these risks requires a shift in how the industry prioritizes third-party security.”

Key findings

• 28% of companies reported breaches — higher than the S&P 500 (21%) and double the U.S. energy industry (14%).
• 59% of breaches involved third-party attack vectors, the highest rate observed so far and more than double the global cross-industry average of 29%. Third-party software & IT caused 50% of these breaches.
• Insurance carriers were disproportionately affected by third-party breaches. Although carriers made up about 27% of the total sample, they represented 50% of the companies hit by third-party incidents.
• More than half (56%) of companies had at least one compromised credential in the past two years.
• Malware infections and device compromises affected 17% of companies last year.
•  The lowest-scoring cyber risk factors for the sector are application security, DNS health and network security. DNS health rarely ranks among these factors.

Cybersecurity recommendations for the insurance industry

Based on this analysis, the SecurityScorecard STRIKE team offers actionable insights for the insurance sector to strengthen its supply chain:

• • Strengthen third-party risk management for insurance carriers: Carriers face elevated third-party risks due to dependencies on low-scoring industry segments, including IT vendors and brokers. Focus on high-risk partners to reduce vulnerabilities and address frequent breaches and credential compromises.
  • Ensure vendors have their own effective TPRM programs: Fourth-party risks from vendors’ suppliers are critical but often missed. Ensure vendors have strong TPRM processes to close supply chain gaps and prevent breaches like the MOVEit campaign.
  • Avoid paying ransomware demands: Paying ransoms encourages attacks, risks legal issues, and doesn’t ensure recovery. Avoiding payments helps deter criminals and protects the broader ecosystem.

Methodology

This report evaluates the SecurityScorecard ratings and publicly available breach histories of the top 150 companies in the insurance sector to offer clear insights into the state of cybersecurity across the sector. The research organizes the supply chain into five main segments: Insurance carriers; Reinsurance companies; Agencies and brokers; Third-party claims processors and administrators; and Insurance-specific software and IT products and services.

The list of 150 companies was carefully assembled using reliable insurance industry publications and rankings, ensuring accuracy and depth in the findings.