Cyber Risk : Insurance VS Reinsurance – What sets them apart?

To understand the differences between insurance and reinsurance, we’re exploring the world of cyber risk with two SCOR experts, Gillian Anderson, Global Head of Cyber Insurance at SCOR Business Solutions, and Julien Galzy, SCOR’s Head of Cyber Treaty Reinsurance.

Cyber risk is no longer a niche concern; it’s one of the most pressing challenges for businesses worldwide. Unlike many traditional risks, such as property damage or liability, cyber threats are borderless, fast-evolving, and systemic, meaning a single event can ripple across industries and geographies. Cyber risks are approached differently by insurers and reinsurers, but at SCOR we have the benefit of having both insurance and reinsurance teams focused on this risk.

Why Cyber Risk Is So Complex

Before diving into the differences between cyber insurance and reinsurance, let’s first take a look at what makes cyber such a challenging risk to understand and prevent. Cyber risk is global and fast-moving, hackers change tactics all the time, and technology evolves quickly. This makes it hard to predict and measure. Traditional insurance relies on decades of data to calculate risk, but with cyber, there isn’t that kind of history. Instead, insurers and reinsurers use expert judgement and advanced models to estimate potential losses.

Another challenge is the systemic nature of cyber risk.

“You could have an event impacting the whole globe, similar to Covid,” Julien explains.

A single event, such as a cloud outage, could affect thousands of businesses worldwide. That’s why insurers and reinsurers work together to make sure these risks remain manageable.

Insurance VS Reinsurance: What’s the Difference?

SCOR writes cyber in two ways: through SCOR Business Solutions, which provides direct insurance for large corporates, and through SCOR P&C Reinsurance, which offers cyber treaty reinsurance to insurers. This dual approach gives SCOR a unique advantage: real-world insights from direct insurance feed into our reinsurance models, while our global reinsurance expertise strengthens the support we provide to corporate clients.

Insurance protects companies. If a business suffers from a cyberattack, its policy covers losses and provides services like forensic investigations, legal advice, and even negotiation with hackers.

Gillian explains: “Our role is to help corporates recover quickly and minimize the impact of an attack.”

Reinsurance, on the other hand, protects insurers. It helps them share the risk, so they don’t face catastrophic losses alone.

Julen clarifies: “We act as long-term partners for advanced insurers, sharing risk and market insights. For those new to cyber, we help them build their underwriting approach.”

In practice, reinsurers step in when insurers face losses to ensure stability in the market.

But why does SCOR do both? Because operating in both spaces creates a feedback loop. Direct insurance experience gives SCOR real-world data and claims insights, while reinsurance expertise strengthens our ability to model systemic risk and advise insurers. This synergy benefits clients and reinforces SCOR’s position in cyber risk management.

The Future of Cyber

Cyber risks have accelerated over the last two decades and continue to do so as new technologies are used in increasingly sophisticated attacks.

Artificial Intelligence is one technology that is changing the game when it comes to cyberattacks – and how insurers and reinsurers anticipate and respond to them. Hackers use AI to make attacks more sophisticated, but insurers and reinsurers also use it to improve their work. For example, SCOR uses AI to speed up underwriting, score risks, and analyze global cyber incidents. AI won’t replace human judgement, but it helps make processes faster and smarter.

“AI makes attacks easier from criminals, but clients also use it to monitor their systems,” Gillian says.

Julien adds: “We use AI to collect and aggregate data from cyber incident databases which helps us understand trends quickly.”

AI is, therefore, both a challenge and an opportunity: it raises the stakes for cyber defense while enabling insurers and reinsurers to respond with greater precision and agility.

Both experts agree cyber risk will keep growing. More technology means more opportunities for hackers – and more need for future cyber insurance and reinsurance professionals.

“The threat landscape is likely to get worse,” Gilian says, which means the insurance market will need to keep adapting to meet these challenges.

This uncertainty underscores the importance of innovation, collaboration, and resilience across the insurance value chain.

Career in Cyber

For someone who’s interested in this field, Gillian and Julien have two pieces of advice, emphasizing the importance of relationships and curiosity.

“Build your network,” Gillian says. “People get caught up on being very technical, but your connections will help you the most.”

Julien adds: “Be curious. Ask questions. Most questions are good questions and people are willing to help.”

Technical skills are useful, but soft skills like communication and problem-solving are just as important. Cyber is a fast-changing area, so flexibility and willingness to learn are key.

Related articles

Back to blog