Apple, Cisco Partner to Improve Cyber Insurance Policies

Cisco is getting ready for a new journey in cyber insurance, and Apple will be part of it, the company announced this week.

The company didn’t provide specific details on what its customers should be looking for, but David Ulevitch, Vice President for Cisco’s Security Business Group, mentioned in a blog post on Monday that the company is working with leading companies to build the architecture needed to offer "more robust" policies.

“We’re collaborating with insurance industry heavyweights to lead the way in developing the architecture that enables cyber insurance providers to offer more robust policies to our customers,” Ulevitch said.

He also noted that Cisco will enable “continuous security monitoring and a measurable reference architecture,” and that technologies from both Apple and Cisco will be included.

Ulevitch mentioned Cisco’s future cyber insurance intentions in a blog post announcing the Cisco Security Connector app for iPhone and iPad in the enterprise, the latest product to spawn from the company’s collaboration with Apple. Set to arrive this fall, the app should provide “visibility, control, and privacy for iOS devices.”

At a Cisco event in Las Vegas on Monday, Apple Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook reportedly said that the combination of technology Apple and Cisco offer should result in companies paying less for cyber insurance.

“If your enterprise or company is using Cisco and Apple, the combination should make that insurance cost significantly less for you,” Cook said. Cook made an appearance on stage at the Cisco Live 2017 show during Cisco CEO Chuck Robbins’ keynote address.

Apple and Cisco have been working together on cyber-security related areas for a couple of years. Earlier this month, they extended their “fast-lane” initiative to include business critical apps for macOS. The project is meant to help validate applications and devices that are optimized for Cisco networks.

Over the past years, Cisco has significantly increased its efforts in the cyber security area and appears determined to invest even more. More information on its plans should become public shortly, Ulevitch says: “This is just the beginning — stay tuned for more details in the coming months.”

Related: Cisco Releases Open Source Malware Signature Generator

Related: Cisco Launches New Firepower Firewalls

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Ionut Arghire is an international correspondent for SecurityWeek.
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Original author: Ionut Arghire