| Feature | Commercial General Liability (CGL) | Cyber Privacy Liability |
|---|---|---|
| Covers bodily injury/property damage | Yes | No |
| Covers wrongful collection of data | No (excluded by most ISO forms) | Yes |
| Responds to BIPA claims | Typically excluded or sublimited | Yes, if biometric coverage is included |
| Covers regulatory defense | No | Yes, under most forms |
| Covers class action defense costs | Only for covered claims (rare for privacy) | Yes, subject to policy terms |
| Duty to defend vs. duty to reimburse | Duty to defend (standard) | Varies by form: check your policy |
A single breach involving controlled unclassified information can trigger regulatory investigations under DFARS, potential debarment proceedings, and ITAR penalty exposure that reaches into eight figures. For defense contractors operating between 10 and 500 employees, the financial consequences of a cyber incident extend far beyond the cost of forensics and notification: they threaten the contract relationships that keep the business alive. Standard commercial cyber policies were not designed for this risk profile. They do not account for CMMC assessment requirements, CUI handling obligations, export-controlled technical data, or the contractual indemnity clauses that prime contractors push down the supply chain.
This guide breaks down how cyber insurance works for defense contractors, covering CMMC and NIST 800-171 compliance obligations, CUI breach scenarios, ITAR data exposure, and the flow-down requirements that shift liability from primes to subcontractors. If your company touches a DoD contract, the gap between a general-market cyber policy and one structured for defense work could be the difference between surviving an incident and losing your ability to compete for future awards.
The Intersection of Cyber Insurance and DoD Compliance
The defense industrial base operates under a compliance framework that directly affects whether a contractor can obtain or retain cyber insurance. Carriers writing policies for DoD suppliers now evaluate CMMC certification status and NIST 800-171 assessment scores as part of the underwriting process. A contractor that cannot demonstrate progress toward these standards faces higher premiums, narrower coverage, or outright denial.
This creates a feedback loop: the same security controls that satisfy DoD requirements also satisfy underwriters. Failing on one front typically means failing on both.
How CMMC Certification Affects Policy Eligibility
CMMC 2.0 requires third-party assessment for Level 2 contractors handling CUI, and self-assessment for Level 1. Carriers increasingly ask for proof of certification status or a Plan of Action and Milestones during the application process. A contractor that has not begun the CMMC journey may find that 41% of cyber insurance applications were denied on first submission in 2025, primarily due to insufficient security controls, and defense-sector applicants without CMMC progress face even steeper odds.
Your CMMC level signals to the carrier how seriously you treat information security. A Level 2 certification backed by a C3PAO assessment tells the underwriter that 110 security practices have been independently verified, which reduces the carrier's perceived risk.
NIST 800-171: The Baseline for Insurability
NIST SP 800-171 remains the technical foundation beneath CMMC. Its 110 controls across 14 families, from access control to incident response, map directly to the security questionnaires that carriers require. If your System Security Plan documents full implementation, you are in a strong position. If your POA&M lists 30 open items, expect the carrier to either exclude CUI-related claims or price the risk accordingly.
Carriers that specialize in defense-sector placements will review your SPRS score. A score below 70 often triggers additional scrutiny, and many carriers now expect documented evidence of endpoint detection, MFA, and encrypted backups before they will bind coverage.
By: Caden Braly
Founder of Bloc Cyber Insurance
INDEX
The Intersection of Cyber Insurance and DoD Compliance
Coverage for CUI Breaches and Export Data Exposure
Prime vs. Subcontractor Liability Requirements
Comparing Standard vs. Defense-Specific Cyber Policies
What a Defense Contractor Cyber Policy Should Include
Common Questions About Defense Cyber Insurance
How Underwriters Evaluate Defense Contractor Risk
Bloc Cyber and Its Licensed Producers Are Authorized to Place Cyber Coverage in All 50 U.S. States and The District of Columbia.
Cyber liability insurance covers the financial losses your business faces after a cyberattack or data breach. This page explains what the coverage includes, who needs it, what it costs, and how Bloc Cyber helps you get protected fast.
We start with a twenty-minute call to walk through your contracts, your draw process, your tech stack, and the last twelve months of attempted fraud. From there we go to market with ten-plus carriers, benchmark terms side-by-side, and present the options in plain language with recommended limits and retentions. Most intakes get indicative terms within one business day.
This comparison underscores why relying on a single policy form without reading the endorsements creates dangerous gaps. A thorough form-level review, the kind Bloc Cyber performs before placement, identifies whether your social engineering sublimit actually matches your average outbound wire size.
This comparison underscores why relying on a single policy form without reading the endorsements creates dangerous gaps. A thorough form-level review, the kind Bloc Cyber performs before placement, identifies whether your social engineering sublimit actually matches your average outbound wire size.
Executive Messaging Support and Media Training
Your CEO or spokesperson will face cameras and microphones. Executive messaging support covers the cost of media training, message development, and coaching sessions that prepare your leadership for press conferences, interviews, and public statements. This component is easy to overlook during placement, but it is one of the most valuable. A single unscripted remark by an executive can extend a crisis by weeks. Crisis management programs offered by some carriers include pre-loss media training as part of the policy, which means your team gets coached before a crisis hits, not after.
Utility-specific cyber coverage typically includes several insuring agreements that go beyond what a standard commercial cyber form provides. First-party coverage should address incident response costs, data restoration, and crisis communications. Third-party coverage should address regulatory defense, liability to affected customers, and claims arising from service interruption. The critical additions for utilities are business interruption tied to physical operations and coverage for failures originating in third-party control system vendors.
Coverage for CUI Breaches and Export Data Exposure
Defense contractors face two distinct but overlapping data-exposure risks: unauthorized disclosure of CUI and spills of ITAR-controlled technical data. Each carries its own regulatory consequences, and each requires specific policy language to ensure the coverage grant responds.
Insuring Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI)
A CUI breach triggers DFARS 252.204-7012, which requires notification to the DoD Cyber Crime Center within 72 hours. The costs that follow include forensic investigation, legal counsel experienced in government contracting, potential False Claims Act exposure, and the business interruption that comes from a contracting officer suspending your access to DoD networks.
Standard cyber policies may cover forensics and notification but often exclude government contract penalties or the cost of defending against a qui tam action. A defense-specific policy form should address regulatory defense costs, government investigation response, and the loss of future contract revenue tied to a security incident. Bloc Cyber's approach of reviewing coverage at the insuring-agreement level catches these gaps before binding, so the contractor knows exactly what triggers the policy and where the coverage stops.
ITAR Violations and Technical Data Spills
ITAR violations carry civil penalties up to $500,000 per violation and criminal penalties up to $1 million and 20 years imprisonment. A technical data spill, even an accidental email to an unauthorized foreign person, constitutes a potential violation. The shift toward CUI enclaves and tighter ITAR enforcement in 2026 has made this risk more acute for small and mid-market contractors.
Most general cyber policies do not cover ITAR penalty exposure. The policy form needs explicit language addressing export control violations, voluntary disclosure costs, and the legal fees associated with State Department or BIS investigations. Without that language, the contractor bears the full financial weight of a data spill.
We start with a twenty-minute call to walk through your contracts, your draw process, your tech stack, and the last twelve months of attempted fraud. From there we go to market with ten-plus carriers, benchmark terms side-by-side, and present the options in plain language with recommended limits and retentions. Most intakes get indicative terms within one business day.
| Coverage Element | Standard Policy | Comprehensive Policy |
|---|---|---|
| Ransom Payment Sublimit | $100,000 - $250,000 | Full policy limit |
| Negotiation Services | Panel vendor only | Choice of vendor with pre-approval |
| Sanctions Screening | Included | Included with legal counsel |
| Data Restoration | Subject to separate sublimit | Included in aggregate limit |
| System Rebuild | Limited to like-kind replacement | Includes upgrades if required by regulation |
| Business Interruption Waiting Period | 12 - 24 hours | 6 - 8 hours |
| Dependent Business Interruption | Excluded | Included with sublimit |
Internal Threats: When Employee Information is Compromised
Employee data exposure is often overlooked in privacy liability planning. Your HR systems hold Social Security numbers, direct deposit information, health records, and sometimes biometric data. A breach of employee records triggers notification obligations under state law and can generate lawsuits from your own workforce.
Insider threats, whether from a disgruntled employee exfiltrating data or a payroll vendor suffering a breach, create exposure that sits at the intersection of cyber liability and employment practices liability. Not every cyber form covers claims brought by employees: some policies contain an "insured vs. insured" exclusion that bars coverage when the claimant is also an employee. This is a gap that must be identified during the placement process, not discovered during a claim.
Prime vs. Subcontractor Liability Requirements
The defense supply chain distributes risk downward. Prime contractors pass compliance and insurance obligations to subcontractors through flow-down clauses, creating liability exposure that many smaller companies do not fully appreciate until a claim arises.
Flow-down Clauses and Contractual Indemnity
Prime contractors routinely require subcontractors to carry cyber insurance with minimum limits, name the prime as an additional insured, and agree to broad indemnification for any breach originating in the subcontractor's environment. These flow-down requirements now extend to CMMC compliance obligations, meaning a subcontractor's failure to achieve certification can jeopardize the prime's contract.
The contractual liability exclusion in many standard cyber policies will void coverage for claims arising from these indemnity agreements. Your policy must include a contractual liability carve-back that specifically addresses defense contract flow-down obligations. Without it, you have insurance that does not respond to the most likely claim scenario you face.
We start with a twenty-minute call to walk through your contracts, your draw process, your tech stack, and the last twelve months of attempted fraud. From there we go to market with ten-plus carriers, benchmark terms side-by-side, and present the options in plain language with recommended limits and retentions. Most intakes get indicative terms within one business day.
| Coverage Element | Commercial General Liability | Cyber Insurance |
|---|---|---|
| Data breach notification costs | Not covered | Covered under first-party |
| Ransomware payment | Not covered | Covered (subject to sublimit) |
| Regulatory defense | Not covered | Covered under third-party |
| Business interruption from cyberattack | Not covered | Covered with waiting period |
| Funds transfer fraud | Not covered | Covered via cyber crime endorsement |
| Third-party lawsuit over data loss | Excluded or severely limited | Covered under third-party liability |
| Technology product failure | Not covered | Covered under Tech E&O |
Carriers view social engineering as a high-frequency, controllable-risk exposure. Unlike a data breach that may involve millions of records, a wire fraud loss is often the result of a single procedural failure. Insurers price and limit accordingly. A company with a $1 million crime policy might carry only $250,000 in social engineering coverage. If a single BEC attack costs $400,000, the policy pays $250,000 and the insured absorbs the rest. Some endorsements also apply co-insurance, meaning the carrier pays only 50% or 75% of the loss up to the sublimit. On a $250,000 sublimit with 50% co-insurance, your maximum recovery is $125,000.
Why Social Engineering Limits are Lower Than Policy Aggregate
Social engineering losses are almost always first-party: your company sent money to a criminal. The loss belongs to you, not to a customer or third party filing a claim against you. This distinction matters because third-party liability coverage on a cyber form will not respond. You need a first-party coverage grant, either within a crime policy or as a standalone endorsement, that explicitly names social engineering or fraudulent impersonation as a covered peril.
The Importance of First-Party vs. Third-Party Loss
Comparing Standard vs. Defense-Specific Cyber Policies
The differences between a general commercial cyber policy and one structured for defense work are substantial. Here is a comparison of key coverage areas:
| Coverage Area | Standard Cyber Policy | Defense-Specific Cyber Policy |
|---|---|---|
| CUI breach response | May cover notification costs only | Covers forensics, DoD notification, regulatory defense, contract loss |
| ITAR penalty exposure | Typically excluded | Explicit coverage for voluntary disclosure and defense costs |
| DFARS 7012 compliance costs | Not addressed | Covers 72-hour reporting obligations and related legal fees |
| Flow-down indemnity | Excluded by contractual liability exclusion | Carve-back for defense contract indemnity clauses |
| Government investigation | Limited or excluded | Covers regulatory defense for DoD, State Dept, BIS inquiries |
| CMMC assessment failure | Not relevant to policy | May cover remediation costs and business interruption |
| Sublimits | Often bundled with low caps | Individually negotiated per insuring agreement |
A generalist broker may not recognize these gaps because they do not regularly place defense-sector policies. Bloc Cyber's practice focuses entirely on cyber, tech E&O, and AI liability, which means the form-level review catches sublimit and retention issues that a generalist placement would miss.
No policy form replaces internal controls. Carriers price social engineering coverage partly on the strength of your verification procedures, and weak controls can void coverage at claims time. Invoice manipulation claims represent a significant share of cyber insurance losses across the mid-market segment, and carriers are scrutinizing pre-loss controls more aggressively than ever.
We start with a twenty-minute call to walk through your contracts, your draw process, your tech stack, and the last twelve months of attempted fraud. From there we go to market with ten-plus carriers, benchmark terms side-by-side, and present the options in plain language with recommended limits and retentions. Most intakes get indicative terms within one business day.
Understanding Aggregate Limits vs. Per-Occurrence Limits
Your policy's aggregate limit is the total amount available for all claims during the policy period. A per-occurrence limit caps what the insurer will pay for any single event. If your aggregate and per-occurrence limits are the same, a single large breach could exhaust your entire annual coverage. Organizations that face multiple threat vectors, such as a phishing attack and a separate vendor breach in the same year, should consider whether their aggregate provides enough capacity for more than one event. Sublimits on specific coverage parts, such as a $500,000 sublimit on regulatory fines within a $3 million aggregate, can create hidden gaps that only become visible at claim time.
What a Defense Contractor Cyber Policy Should Include
Your policy should contain, at minimum, these insuring agreements: first-party breach response covering CUI-specific forensics and notification, third-party liability for claims arising from unauthorized data disclosure, regulatory defense covering DoD and export-control investigations, business interruption tied to government network access suspension, and contractual liability coverage for flow-down indemnity obligations.
Each of these should carry its own stated limit, not a shared sublimit that forces you to choose between forensics and legal defense during an active incident. The retention (your deductible) and waiting period for business interruption should be reviewed against your actual incident response timeline, not accepted at the carrier's default.
We start with a twenty-minute call to walk through your contracts, your draw process, your tech stack, and the last twelve months of attempted fraud. From there we go to market with ten-plus carriers, benchmark terms side-by-side, and present the options in plain language with recommended limits and retentions. Most intakes get indicative terms within one business day.
| Coverage Element | Commercial General Liability | Cyber Insurance |
|---|---|---|
| Data breach notification costs | Not covered | Covered under first-party |
| Ransomware payment | Not covered | Covered (subject to sublimit) |
| Regulatory defense | Not covered | Covered under third-party |
| Business interruption from cyberattack | Not covered | Covered with waiting period |
| Funds transfer fraud | Not covered | Covered via cyber crime endorsement |
| Third-party lawsuit over data loss | Excluded or severely limited | Covered under third-party liability |
| Technology product failure | Not covered | Covered under Tech E&O |
It depends on your policy. Many standard policies require a specific "Cyber Crime" endorsement to cover losses from being tricked into sending money to a fraudster.
Does cyber insurance cover social engineering scams?
Is deepfake fraud covered under standard impersonation terms?
It depends entirely on the policy language. Many forms written before 2024 reference only email or written communication. If the endorsement does not explicitly include voice or video impersonation, a deepfake-based claim may fall outside the coverage grant. Ask your broker to confirm the form addresses synthetic media.
Common Questions About Defense Cyber Insurance
Does my standard cyber policy cover a CUI breach? It may cover some notification costs, but most standard forms exclude government investigation defense, DFARS-specific obligations, and contract-related losses. You need to read the exclusions, not just the declarations page.
Will CMMC certification lower my premium? Typically, yes. Carriers view CMMC Level 2 certification as evidence of a mature security program, which reduces their underwriting risk. The discount varies by carrier and your overall risk profile.
Can a prime contractor require me to carry specific cyber insurance limits? Yes. Flow-down clauses commonly specify minimum limits of $1 million to $5 million, additional insured status, and waiver of subrogation. Your policy must accommodate these requirements or you risk losing the subcontract.
What happens if I have an ITAR data spill and no export-control coverage? You bear the full cost of voluntary disclosure, legal defense, and any penalties. Civil penalties alone can reach $500,000 per violation, and a single incident can involve multiple violations.
Do I need separate policies for cyber liability and tech E&O?
Not necessarily. Some policy forms combine both under a single program, but the insuring agreements must be reviewed individually to confirm that defense-specific risks are covered under each.
No policy form replaces internal controls. Carriers price social engineering coverage partly on the strength of your verification procedures, and weak controls can void coverage at claims time. Invoice manipulation claims represent a significant share of cyber insurance losses across the mid-market segment, and carriers are scrutinizing pre-loss controls more aggressively than ever.
We start with a twenty-minute call to walk through your contracts, your draw process, your tech stack, and the last twelve months of attempted fraud. From there we go to market with ten-plus carriers, benchmark terms side-by-side, and present the options in plain language with recommended limits and retentions. Most intakes get indicative terms within one business day.
Understanding Aggregate Limits vs. Per-Occurrence Limits
Your policy's aggregate limit is the total amount available for all claims during the policy period. A per-occurrence limit caps what the insurer will pay for any single event. If your aggregate and per-occurrence limits are the same, a single large breach could exhaust your entire annual coverage. Organizations that face multiple threat vectors, such as a phishing attack and a separate vendor breach in the same year, should consider whether their aggregate provides enough capacity for more than one event. Sublimits on specific coverage parts, such as a $500,000 sublimit on regulatory fines within a $3 million aggregate, can create hidden gaps that only become visible at claim time.
How Underwriters Evaluate Defense Contractor Risk
Carriers assess defense contractors differently than commercial applicants. They examine your SPRS score, the scope of CUI you handle, whether you maintain a separate CUI enclave, your incident response plan's alignment with DFARS 7012, and your subcontractor management practices. Carriers in 2026 expect documented MFA deployment, endpoint detection and response tools, and tested backup procedures as baseline requirements before they will quote.
Your application should include your System Security Plan, your most recent SPRS score, and documentation of any CMMC assessment activity. Incomplete applications are the primary driver of first-submission denials.
We start with a twenty-minute call to walk through your contracts, your draw process, your tech stack, and the last twelve months of attempted fraud. From there we go to market with ten-plus carriers, benchmark terms side-by-side, and present the options in plain language with recommended limits and retentions. Most intakes get indicative terms within one business day.
| Coverage Element | Commercial General Liability | Cyber Insurance |
|---|---|---|
| Data breach notification costs | Not covered | Covered under first-party |
| Ransomware payment | Not covered | Covered (subject to sublimit) |
| Regulatory defense | Not covered | Covered under third-party |
| Business interruption from cyberattack | Not covered | Covered with waiting period |
| Funds transfer fraud | Not covered | Covered via cyber crime endorsement |
| Third-party lawsuit over data loss | Excluded or severely limited | Covered under third-party liability |
| Technology product failure | Not covered | Covered under Tech E&O |
It depends on your policy. Many standard policies require a specific "Cyber Crime" endorsement to cover losses from being tricked into sending money to a fraudster.
Does cyber insurance cover social engineering scams?
Is deepfake fraud covered under standard impersonation terms?
It depends entirely on the policy language. Many forms written before 2024 reference only email or written communication. If the endorsement does not explicitly include voice or video impersonation, a deepfake-based claim may fall outside the coverage grant. Ask your broker to confirm the form addresses synthetic media.
The Cost of Getting This Wrong
A defense contractor that purchases a standard cyber policy and suffers a CUI breach will likely discover coverage gaps during the worst possible moment: the claim. The carrier may deny coverage for government investigation costs, ITAR penalties, or contractual indemnity obligations to the prime. The contractor then faces seven-figure exposure with no policy response, and the resulting financial strain can end the business.
The cost difference between a standard policy and a defense-specific placement is typically 15% to 40% in additional premium. Measured against the potential exposure, that difference is not a cost: it is a risk transfer decision.
No policy form replaces internal controls. Carriers price social engineering coverage partly on the strength of your verification procedures, and weak controls can void coverage at claims time. Invoice manipulation claims represent a significant share of cyber insurance losses across the mid-market segment, and carriers are scrutinizing pre-loss controls more aggressively than ever.
We start with a twenty-minute call to walk through your contracts, your draw process, your tech stack, and the last twelve months of attempted fraud. From there we go to market with ten-plus carriers, benchmark terms side-by-side, and present the options in plain language with recommended limits and retentions. Most intakes get indicative terms within one business day.
Understanding Aggregate Limits vs. Per-Occurrence Limits
Your policy's aggregate limit is the total amount available for all claims during the policy period. A per-occurrence limit caps what the insurer will pay for any single event. If your aggregate and per-occurrence limits are the same, a single large breach could exhaust your entire annual coverage. Organizations that face multiple threat vectors, such as a phishing attack and a separate vendor breach in the same year, should consider whether their aggregate provides enough capacity for more than one event. Sublimits on specific coverage parts, such as a $500,000 sublimit on regulatory fines within a $3 million aggregate, can create hidden gaps that only become visible at claim time.
Before You Buy a Policy
Defense contractor cyber insurance requires precision at the policy-form level. The compliance obligations under CMMC, NIST 800-171, DFARS, and ITAR create risk profiles that standard commercial cyber policies were not built to address. Flow-down clauses from prime contractors add contractual liability that many policies explicitly exclude. Every gap in your coverage is a gap your company absorbs in the event of a claim.
The right approach is to work with a specialist who reads the actual policy form, identifies where the coverage grant stops, and explains what each gap will cost you before a claim exposes it. If your company holds or pursues DoD contracts, request a policy review with a Bloc Cyber specialist who can walk through the insuring agreements, sublimits, and exclusions specific to your defense work. The goal is not to sell you a policy: it is to make sure the one you buy actually responds when you need it.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Caden Braly
— Founder, Bloc Cyber
I'm Caden Braly, founder of Bloc Cyber, the specialty cyber insurance arm of Braly Insurance. I built Bloc Cyber around one idea: businesses deserve coverage that actually responds when a cyberattack happens. I work closely with clients to understand their exposure, place the right policy through specialty carriers, and stand with them through the claim. My goal is simple — give every business straight answers and protection they can trust.
Full profile → caden@bloccyber.com LinkedIn
Industries We Protect
Cyber Coverage Built for Your Industry
Every industry faces a different cyber threat, from patient records in healthcare to wire fraud in construction. Bloc Cyber matches coverage to the risks your sector actually faces, drawing on specialty carriers that understand your business. Find your industry below to see how we protect it.
Healthcare
Banking
Retail / E-Commerce
Legal
Technology / SaaS
Education
Energy / Utilities
Manufacturing
Construction
Defense
Healthcare
HIPAA-grade protection for patient data
725
healthcare breaches disclosed in 2024
HIPAA-grade protection for patient data
▣ Ransomware on EHR systems
▣ PHI exfiltration
▣ Medical device exploits
▣ Business email compromise
Sub-sectors we place
Hospitals and health systems
Physician practices and specialty clinics
Dental practices and DSOs
Behavioral health and addiction treatment centers
Medical billing and revenue cycle management firms
Typical turnaround for indication of terms: 1 business day.
Banking
Coverage that meets FFIEC and NYDFS expectations
$5.9M
average cost of a financial sector breach
Common threats we underwrite against
▣ Wire fraud and BEC
▣ Credential stuffing
▣ Third-party vendor risk
▣ Ransomware
Sub-sectors we place
Community banks
Credit unions
Mortgage lenders and loan originators
Wealth management and RIAs
Payment processors and merchant acquirers
Typical turnaround for indication of terms: 1 business day.
Retail / E-Commerce
PCI-DSS aligned coverage for every checkout
42%
of retailers hit by ransomware in the last year
Common threats we underwrite against
▣ Magecart / card skimming
▣ POS malware
▣ Account takeover
▣ Supply-chain intrusion
Sub-sectors we place
Direct-to-consumer (DTC) brands
Shopify and marketplace sellers
Brick-and-mortar multi-location retailers
Restaurants and QSR franchises
Grocery and specialty food retail
Typical turnaround for indication of terms: 1 business day.
Legal
Privilege, client files, and trust-account safeguards
1 in 4
law firms reported a breach in 2024
Common threats we underwrite against
▣ Wire-transfer fraud
▣ Privileged data theft
▣ Email account compromise
▣ Ransomware
Sub-sectors we place
AmLaw / large firms
Boutique litigation firms
Personal injury and plaintiffs’ firms
Estate planning and trust attorneys
Title and real estate closing firms
Typical turnaround for indication of terms: 1 business day.
Technology / SaaS
SOC 2 and ISO-aligned risk transfer
$4.88M
avg. cost of a SaaS breach in 2024
Common threats we underwrite against
▣ Supply-chain attacks
▣ Cloud misconfiguration
▣ Token and key theft
▣ Zero-day exploits
Sub-sectors we place
B2B SaaS platforms
Managed service providers (MSPs) and MSSPs
Fintech startups
AI and machine learning companies
Cloud hosting and infrastructure providers
Typical turnaround for indication of terms: 1 business day.
Education
FERPA-aligned coverage for student and research data
80%
of K–12 districts hit by ransomware since 2022
Common threats we underwrite against
▣ Ransomware on district networks
▣ Student PII theft
▣ Fake invoice fraud
▣ DDoS on exam platforms
Sub-sectors we place
K-12 public school districts
Private and charter schools
Colleges and universities
EdTech platforms
Tutoring, test prep, and online learning providers
Typical turnaround for indication of terms: 1 business day.
Energy / Utilities
OT and IT coverage for critical infrastructure
24/7
operational-tech monitoring requirements
Common threats we underwrite against
▣ ICS/SCADA intrusion
▣ Nation-state actors
▣ Ransomware on OT
▣ Insider threat
Sub-sectors we place
Municipal utilities (water, electric, gas)
Oil and gas operators
Pipeline and midstream companies
Renewable energy (solar, wind) developers
Electric cooperatives and rural utilities
Typical turnaround for indication of terms: 1 business day.
Manufacturing
Business interruption protection for connected plants
25%
of all ransomware attacks target manufacturing
Common threats we underwrite against
▣ Ransomware halting production
▣ IP theft
▣ ICS exploits
▣ Vendor compromise
Sub-sectors we place
Industrial and heavy equipment manufacturers
Food and beverage processing
Pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturers
Automotive and parts suppliers
Aerospace component manufacturers
Typical turnaround for indication of terms: 1 business day.
Construction
Protection for project files, wires, and jobsite tech
$200K+
average wire-fraud loss in construction
Common threats we underwrite against
▣ Wire-transfer diversion
▣ BEC on project payments
▣ Stolen bid data
▣ Ransomware
Sub-sectors we place
General contractors
Commercial HVAC, electrical, and plumbing subs
Civil and infrastructure contractors
Homebuilders and residential developers
Architecture and engineering (A&E) firms
Typical turnaround for indication of terms: 1 business day.
Defense
CMMC, DFARS, and CUI-compliant risk transfer
CMMC
2.0 compliance required by 2026
Common threats we underwrite against
▣ CUI exfiltration
▣ Nation-state APTs
▣ Supply-chain compromise
▣ Cleared-personnel targeting
Sub-sectors we place
DoD prime contractors
CMMC-regulated subcontractors
Defense software and systems integrators
Aerospace and satellite contractors
Federal IT and cleared staffing firms
Typical turnaround for indication of terms: 1 business day.
The Bloc system
One foundation.
Ten industry-specific builds.
The Bloc mark is built from stackable planes — each one a different angle on the same core structure. That’s how we place coverage: one underwriting discipline, tuned and re-tuned for every industry we serve.
Coverage
A policy you can actually read.
Structured in three clean blocs.
01
First-Party
Your direct losses when an incident hits your business.
✓
Incident response & forensics
✓
Business interruption
✓ Data restoration
✓ Cyber extortion / ransomware
✓ Funds transfer fraud
✓ Reputational harm
02
Third-Party
Your liability to clients, partners, and regulators.
✓
Network security liability
✓
Privacy liability (HIPAA, GDPR, state laws)
✓ Regulatory defense & fines
✓ PCI-DSS fines and assessments
✓ Media liability
✓ Breach notification costs
03
Specialty
Advanced coverages for complex risks and contracts.
✓
Technology E&O
✓
Social engineering fraud
✓ Contingent business interruption
✓ Systems failure
✓ Bricking & hardware replacement
✓ CMMC / regulatory-specific endorsements
Typical limits placed
$1M / $1M starter
$5M / $10M mid-market
$25M+ layered towers
Custom retentions
Common Questions
Cyber Liability Insurance, Explained
What does cyber insurance cover?
Cyber insurance covers the financial losses from a data breach or cyberattack. This includes breach response, legal fees, customer notification, ransomware, business interruption, and regulatory fines, depending on your policy.
Does my business really need cyber insurance?
Yes. Any business that stores customer data, processes payments, or relies on connected systems faces cyber risk. Small and mid-sized companies are frequent targets because they often have fewer defenses.
How much does cyber insurance cost?
Cost depends on your industry, revenue, data volume, and security practices. We market your risk to multiple carriers to find strong coverage at a competitive price. Request a quote for an exact figure.
What is the difference between first-party and third-party cyber coverage?
First-party coverage pays for your own losses, like data recovery and lost income. Third-party coverage pays for claims from others harmed by a breach on your systems.
How fast can I get a quote?
Most clients receive a quote in under 24 hours after we review the details of their business and exposure.
What should I do first after a cyberattack?
Contact us right away. We help you start breach response, connect you with forensic and legal support, and guide your claim so you contain the damage quickly.
Insights
Field notes from the placement desk.
What carriers are asking right now.
Start a quote
Tell us about your business.
We’ll come back with terms.
We’ll review your stack, your contracts, and your exposure — then place the program against the right markets. Most intakes get indicative terms back within one business day.
01
Quick intake
We only ask what the carriers actually need.
02
Benchmark
Side-by-side terms from 10+ specialty cyber carriers.
03
Bind
Plain-language policy review, e-signed and in force.
