Both products were rolled out to nontechnology companies in January. Executives at The St. Paul Cos. also believe the Internet presents a huge opportunity for insurance companies, and in December, the company expanded its technology business unit by 33 people. The company now employs 187 in that division. O'Neill said most risk managers don't realize that technology risks can come from inside a company as well as from an outside source, such as a computer hacker. O'Neill said there is substantial risk associated with e-mail systems and employees' use of the Web.
Unhappy workers can be just as much a hacker threat as anonymous, outside hackers.
Besides hackers, other technology threats include unauthorized access or theft of data, unauthorized e-commerce activities, theft of money or securities or extortion demands. Lovaas said banks and other financial services firms have prepared best for technology risks. The survey also found risk managers at financial institutions were better prepared for technology risks. Risk managers at financial institutions were half as likely as risk managers overall to report losses from computer viruses and hacking, the survey found. The St. Paul Cos. survey found that insurance agents and brokers might not be ready to sell Internet insurance products.