12/5/2018 5:00:00 AM

Source: Business Insurance

Anne Hidalgo, mayor of Paris, said that the Dec. 1 protests and riots are likely to have caused up to €4 million ($4.5 million) worth of damage to the city’s infrastructure, Challenges.fr reported citing sources. Ms. Hidalgo said that the damage does not include business-related losses. Philippe Belaval, president of France’s Center of National Monuments, said that the Arc de Triomphe suffered several hundred thousand euros worth of damage during the protests.

12/5/2018 4:57:00 AM

Source: Business Insurance

A Switzerland-based Societe Internationale de Telecommunications Aeronautiques study found that more than 50% of companies in the aviation sector do not keep cyber security records as part of their risk register, Phocus Wire reported. Barbara Dalibard, the association’s chief executive, said that the aviation industry needs to implement cyber security measures following a rise in the number and sophistication of cyber attacks. Nearly 90% of chief information officers at airlines plan to implement a cyber security program in the next three years.

11/30/2018 4:31:00 AM

Source: Business Insurance

France-based research firm MKG Group S.A. that protest-related violence at Paris’ Champs-Elysees avenue on Nov. 24 is likely to cost hotels around the city at least 10 million ($11.4 million), Reuters reported. MKG said that several tourists are likely to have canceled hotel bookings following the clashes between protesters and police forces. The violence related to rising fuel prices also damaged restaurants and shop-fronts on the Champs-Elysees. Demonstrators have called for a third weekend of protests on Dec. 1.

11/30/2018 4:37:00 AM

Source: Business Insurance

A cyber attack forced authorities in Moscow to shut down the city’s cable car service one day after it had opened on Nov. 27, The Moscow Times reported citing sources. The suspected hackers had demanded a ransom in Bitcoin and were later found, a source said.

Thomson Reuters

11/30/2018 8:31:00 AM

Source: Business Insurance

(Reuters) – Marriott International said on Friday that hackers illegally accessed its Starwood Hotels brand’s reservation database since 2014, potentially exposing personal information on about 500 million guests.

Shares of the company fell nearly 6% to about $115 in trading before the bell.

Marriott said it was too early to estimate the financial impact of the breach and that it would not affect its long-term financial health. It also said it was working with its insurance carriers to assess the coverage.

The company said for 327 million guests, personal information compromised could include passport details, phone numbers and email addresses. For some others, it could include credit card information.

The company said it learned about the breach after an internal security tool sent an alert on Sept. 8. On further investigation, the hotel chain learned data had been hacked long before.

The company, which bought Starwood in 2016, said it had reported the incident to law enforcement and had begun notifying regulatory authorities.

Marriott said it would send emails to affected guests, starting Friday.

“We are still investigating the situation so we don’t have a list of specific hotels. What we do know is that it only impacted Starwood brands,” Marriott spokesman Jeff Flaherty told Reuters

.

Hotel groups have of late become a target of hackers, seeking to steal information such as credit card data.

Last year, both InterContinental Hotels Group PLC and Hyatt Hotels Corp. were victims of cyber attacks.

Hyatt said it had discovered unauthorized access to payment card information at certain of its locations, affecting 41 properties in 11 countries.

Mark A. Hofmann

11/30/2018 8:56:00 AM

Source: Business Insurance

The U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate have voted to extend the National Flood Insurance Program through Dec. 7.

The heavily indebted program was slated to expire Friday, but late votes in both chambers on Thursday gave it a temporary reprieve. The Senate also approved a measure that would extend the program for six months, but the House has yet to move on a longer-term extension.

The program has been allowed to lapse briefly in the past, only to be reauthorized retroactively.

11/28/2018 5:00:00 AM

Source: Business Insurance

The Islamic Insurance Association of London has published guidelines covering sharia-compliant insurance or takaful to deal with capacity constraints in the sector, Reuters reported. The industry association said that the framework would help U.K.-based underwriters to set up Islamic insurance platforms to write sharia-compliant insurance and reinsurance business.

11/28/2018 4:56:00 AM

Source: Business Insurance

Storm Diana forced the Dublin Port Co. to close cargo terminals and shipping channels on Nov. 27, Belfast Telegraph reported. Heavy rains and wind gusts are expected to lash Ireland’s coast and disrupt shipping operations.

11/28/2018 5:07:00 AM

Source: Business Insurance

Matt Drummelsmith, an official at U.S.-based Aviation Specialty Insurance Inc., said that aircraft insurance rates are expected to increase up to 30% due to recent accidents, Aviation International News reported. Mr. Drummelsmith said that frequent accidents including the Oct. 27 helicopter crash in Leicester City and the Oct. 29 Lion Air Boeing 737 crash have led to a rise in insurance rates. Aircraft operators will face rate increases according to loss history, industry and aircraft type, he added.

Judy Greenwald

11/26/2018 12:39:00 PM

Source: Business Insurance

Risk associated with cyber attacks and data breaches head directors and officers list of top risks, says a survey issued Monday.

The sixth annual survey by Willis Towers Watson PLC and London-based law firm Allen & Overy LLP found that cyber attacks and data breaches have overtaken regulatory and other investigations as top risks, according to the 161 directors, risk officers and others surveyed in the latest report.

The survey report, D&O: Personal Exposure to Global Risk, said 44% of respondents reported they have experienced either a significant cyber attack or a sizeable data loss in the past year, compared with the 24% who reported this in last year’s survey.

Other top risks reported by respondents were regulatory and other investigations, health and safety legislation, and criminal and regulatory fines and penalties, with health and safety making the “top five” for the first time.

The survey found that 43% of large employers, and 38% of listed companies, experienced a regulatory claim involving a director in the last 12 months.

Among other results, 60% reported the regulatory focus on personal accountability is changing company behavior.

The biggest concern about policy terms is whether a D&O policy will be able to respond to claims in all jurisdiction, according to the report.

Other coverage issues were how claims against directors and officers will be controlled and settled; a broad definition of who is insured, clear and easy-to-follow policy terms; and whether there is coverage for the cost of advice at the early stages of an investigation.