This article is part of VentureBeat’s special issue, “The cyber resilience playbook: Navigating the new era of threats.” Read more from this special issue here.Today’s cyber attacks can be paralyzing — and extremely costly — for modern enterprises. Armed with AI, hackers are exploiting vulnerabilities faster than ever.However, standard business insurance products such as general or professional liability policies (errors and omissions, or EO) typically don’t cover losses or damages as the result of breaches or other cyber-related incidents. This makes cybersecurity insurance increasingly critical in 2025 and beyond, particularly as AI transforms (and simplifies) hackers’ methodologies. Cybersecurity-specific insurance policies cover a range of remediation cost and recovery efforts to help enterprises limit damage, recover faster and improve their overall cyber hygiene. But as with any other type of coverage, cyber insurance can be complicated to navigate and full of legalese and loopholes. Let’s go over the basics, why it’s important, what to look for and what trends to expect this year as AI takes center stage. So what does cyber insurance cover?Typically, cyber policies offer coverage for first-party (direct losses) and third-party (outside the business) damages. General coverage includes:. Business interruptions: Lost revenue when an attack takes systems offline;Attack remediation: Incident response, forensic investigations or system repairs;Customer notification and reputation management: Automated alerts when customers’ personally identifiable information (PII) may have been accessed; credit monitoring and breach hotlines; PR work to help repair the brand;Legal expenses: Litigation as the result of a breach (such as lawsuits filed by customers or vendors), what’s known as “duty to defend”;Regulatory action: Investigations that require legal services and potential fines. In the case of ransomware, it’s important to note that, while providers have covered payouts in the past, many are backing off of this practice because hackers are demanding more and regulators are scrutinizing

According to a recent survey conducted by KnowBe4 AFRICA, 58% of respondents are very concerned about cybercrime, a figure which has almost doubled from 29% in 2023. Fear of online fraud and losing money remain their top concern, given the increasing sophistication of AI-assisted cyberthreats.The cybersecurity landscape in Africa is rapidly evolving and presents both significant challenges and opportunities. Africa has seen a notable increase in cybercrime, with ransomware, digital extortion and online scams being particularly prevalent. South Africa, for instance, lost $3 billion to digital banking and mobile app crime in 2023, according to the SA Banking Risk Information Centre. Cybercriminals are using increasingly sophisticated methods, including AI-generated content to impersonate officials and executives, while social engineering attacks become more advanced.In response to these concerns, KnowBe4 conducted a survey to determine how prepared Africans are for cybersecurity threats. This survey, which has been done annually since 2019, polled 800 adults across seven African countries: Morocco, South Africa, Nigeria, Ghana, Egypt, Kenya and Botswana