News Releases

PHILADELPHIA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 9, 2005--A survey of challenges facing chief risk officers and senior risk managers, sponsored by the ACE Group of Companies, demonstrates that senior risk managers are becoming increasingly worried about identify theft and the threat to corporate data security. 
 

According to the findings of the latest quarterly Corporate Business Barometer, conducted by the Economist Intelligence Unit, companies face far more business risk as a result of the changing network risk and regulatory environment.

The latest global survey gauged the opinions of 230 senior risk managers in Asia, Europe, and the Americas, who rated network risk a significant threat facing them today. Almost 50 percent of the same respondents cited reputational risk stemming from breaches in network security as an equally significant threat to their organizations. "The combination of increased consumer concerns, growing criminal threats and tougher regulations has transformed corporate data security from just another problem for the IT department to a crucial risk management challenge for the whole enterprise," said Brad Gow, Vice President of ACE USA Professional Risk. "Data security threats are continually evolving. Without a constant focus on actively managing data and protecting personal information, data security becomes a growing challenge not just from a technological standpoint, but also from the perspective of legal liability, regulatory compliance, corporate reputation, and, ultimately, profitability."

The fact that risk managers, as opposed to IT professionals, are now focusing on these concerns indicates that corporations around the world are becoming more aware of the risks of data security and identity theft.

Among the survey's other findings:

Risk managers were queried on whether regulation in one country increasingly had a "knock-on" effect on the rest of their global operations and processes. Many strongly agreed and added that the benefits of recent regulation have outweighed the problems, even though more than 35 percent of risk managers said that internal resources were overwhelmed with compliance activities. In addition, the survey revealed that making a senior manager responsible for monitoring regulatory activities was critical to the organization's financial well-being and strength.

ACE USA, the U.S.-based retail operating division of the ACE Group of Companies, provides customized risk management solutions designed to help businesses and organizations of every size address key network security and consumer data exposures. Through the ACE Digital DNA(SM) (Data*Network*Availability) network risk insurance policy, ACE USA's underwriting companies can provide coverage* for:

-- The cost of replacing, restoring, or recollecting data that has been corrupted or destroyed due to a network security failure.

-- Costs arising from a criminal extortion threat to release sensitive information or bring down the insured's network unless demands are met, including extortion monies.

-- Costs of complying with identity theft legislation, including customer disclosure.

-- Loss of income and extra expenses that result when the insured's network is interrupted by attack. Covers criminal hackers, malicious insiders, and distributed denial-of-service (DOS) computer attacks.

-- Loss of income and extra expenses that result when key service providers cause network interruption. Coverage includes co-location companies, web-hosting companies, and outsourced e-commerce providers.

* The information provided is for illustrative purposes only and does not amend or alter in any way the terms, conditions, exclusions and limitations of the policy delivered. Please consult the policy for exact terms and conditions.

For additional information about first-party digital insurance and other strategies and tactics for managing digital risk, please contact Brad Gow, Vice President of ACE Professional Risk at (215) 640-1949 or visit: www.ace-ina.com.

ACE USA is the U.S.-based retail operating division of The ACE Group of Companies, headed by ACE Limited (NYSE:ACE), and is rated A+ (Superior) by A.M. Best Company and A+ (Strong) by Standard & Poor's. ACE USA, through its underwriting companies, provides insurance products and services throughout the U.S. Additional information on ACE USA and its products and services can be found at www.ace-ina.com. The ACE Group of Companies provides insurance and reinsurance for a diverse group of clients around the world.

About the research:

Trends and coping strategies in regulatory risk is pat of a research program on global risk issues by the Economist Intelligence Unit. The program is sponsored by the ACE Group of Companies, Cisco Systems, Deutsche Bank, KPMG and IBM.

The findings in this press release are based on a survey of 230 senior executives. Forty-four percent of the participants were based in the U.S., 32 percent were based in Europe, and 15 percent were based in Asia Pacific.

Thirty-nine percent of the companies participating in the survey were from the financial services sector. Respondents from 17 other industries participated in the survey, including professional services, energy sector companies, and IT and technology firms, and pharmaceutical and healthcare companies.