Exchanges Of Cryptocurrency in India aren’t getting insurance protection against cyber risks (business interruption and attacks of ransom ware) due to lack of regulation. Basically all this is due to RBI which puts high risk for insurance underwriter who is doesn’t undergoes recognising cryptocurrencies. To this, a senior executive of Future General India Insurance mentioned about the insured loss that it could be settled either ways by rupee and also in dollar (currencies in which cyber insurance claims are settled). In cases when law on cryptocurrency is brought up only then insurers could define insured loss. Whereas in cases of ransomware attack, hackers tend to raise demand for ransom in Bitcoin or in other cryptocurrencies and insurers pay 50-60% of premium so accumulated by way of cyber risks in the name of claims.
About Cyber Theft and Role of Insurer
Insurance underwriter can’t cover anybody’s risks as they don’t have any such product for the same as cyber theft or ransomware attacks. Due to lack of clear regulation for acknowledging cryptocurrency trading exchanges, insurers are reluctant in covering risk of the investors. In case exchanges have lost huge sum against ransomware theft, then loss has to be born by such an exchange, according to Nischal Shetty (CEO of WazirX). Where according to a non-life general insurance company executive had kept his review regarding most of the exchanges being international companies being exposed to greater risks. Insurers had to keep crypto exchanges under the decline list or that businesses which were excluded from coverage, as per some insurer. To this, Sharan Nair (Chief business officer, CoinSwitchKuber) had given his view point on the same by saying that there is no such insurance cover in India for covering them from the results of cyberattack. Also the covers that are offered abroad are not proper and are not able to give coverage to whole of the crypto assets which exchanges carry with them.
Therefore one has to play safe with investing in cryptocurrency as until they are been legalised, they are under greater risk of cyber theft and ransomware attacks as well as crypto exchanges are not been insured for the same.
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