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🦠 '''Malware''' is malicious software — including viruses, ransomware, trojans, worms, and spyware — designed to infiltrate, damage, or exploit computer systems, and in the insurance industry it represents one of the most prevalent and costly [[Definition:Cyber risk | cyber risk]] exposures that [[Definition:Cyber insurance | cyber insurance]] policies are built to address. Malware attacks against [[Definition:Insurance carrier | insurers]], [[Definition:Insurance broker | brokers]], [[Definition:Managing general agent (MGA) | MGAs]], and their [[Definition:Policyholder | policyholders]] can compromise sensitive personal and financial data, disrupt operations, and trigger a cascade of regulatory, legal, and reputational consequences. The threat is so pervasive that malware-related incidents account for a significant share of all [[Definition:Claim | claims]] filed under cyber liability policies.

🔒 From an [[Definition:Underwriting | underwriting]] standpoint, an applicant's defenses against malware are a central factor in [[Definition:Risk assessment | risk assessment]] for [[Definition:Cyber insurance | cyber coverage]]. [[Definition:Underwriter | Underwriters]] evaluate endpoint detection and response tools, email filtering protocols, patch management cadence, employee security training programs, and backup strategies when determining eligibility, [[Definition:Premium | pricing]], and policy terms. Ransomware — a malware variant that encrypts a victim's data and demands payment for its release — has driven some of the most dramatic shifts in the cyber insurance market, pushing carriers to impose stricter [[Definition:Sublimit | sublimits]], introduce [[Definition:Coinsurance | coinsurance]] provisions on ransomware losses, and mandate specific security controls as conditions of coverage. When a malware event does occur, the [[Definition:Incident response | incident response]] costs covered by a typical cyber policy may include forensic investigation, system restoration, [[Definition:Business interruption insurance | business interruption]] losses, [[Definition:Data breach notification | notification expenses]], credit monitoring, and legal defense.

🌐 Beyond its role as a covered peril, malware also poses a direct operational threat to insurance organizations themselves. Carriers hold enormous repositories of [[Definition:Personally identifiable information (PII) | personally identifiable information]] and [[Definition:Protected health information (PHI) | protected health information]], making them attractive targets. A successful malware intrusion can disrupt [[Definition:Policy administration system | policy administration]], [[Definition:Claims management | claims processing]], and [[Definition:Reinsurance | reinsurance]] reporting — and can expose the insurer to [[Definition:Regulatory compliance | regulatory penalties]] and class-action litigation. The evolving sophistication of malware, including [[Definition:Artificial intelligence (AI) | AI-powered]] attack techniques, keeps this peril at the forefront of both product development and enterprise risk management across the sector.

'''Related concepts'''
{{Div col|colwidth=20em}}
* [[Definition:Cyber insurance]]
* [[Definition:Ransomware]]
* [[Definition:Cyber risk]]
* [[Definition:Incident response]]
* [[Definition:Data breach notification]]
* [[Definition:Business interruption insurance]]
{{Div col end}}

Definition:Malware - Revision history

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