Many law firms take comfort in having a Cyber Essentials policy in place — but the reality is that it often provides a false sense of security rather than genuine protection.
Cyber Essentials is a valuable government-backed scheme designed to promote basic cybersecurity hygiene. However, when brokers bundle it into insurance packages as low-level cover, firms can be misled into believing they are comprehensively insured against cyber threats. In truth, the protection is limited in scope and financial value.
The IASME-backed Cyber Essentials insurance offers a maximum £25,000 sum insured — a figure that will not go far in the event of a serious cyber incident. The cover tends to focus on small-scale recovery and minimal response costs, leaving substantial gaps where law firms face their greatest exposures: business interruption, reputational harm, client data breaches, and social engineering attacks.
Critically, crime losses such as funds transfer fraud — among the most common causes of cyber-related financial loss for law firms — are not included under these policies.
For firms handling sensitive client data and operating under strict confidentiality obligations, that level of cover simply isn’t enough.
A genuinely robust approach requires a comprehensive, bespoke cyber insurance policy — one that addresses:
- First-party losses including ransomware, forensic investigation, and business interruption
- Third-party liabilities arising from data breaches or client claims
- Regulatory defence and ICO response costs
- Crime and social engineering losses, including funds transfer fraud and invoice redirection
Law firms must not mistake Cyber Essentials certification — or its attached entry-level insurance — for a full cybersecurity strategy. It’s a useful starting point, but real protection means investing in an all-encompassing policy that reflects the complexity and financial exposure of today’s legal sector.