Is cyberwarfare war? Insurers balk at paying for some cyberattacks

In an era of unceasing cyberattacks, including cases of state-sponsored hacking, insurance companies are beginning to re-interpret an old line in their contracts known as the “war exclusion.” But Zurich swatted back Mondelez’s claim, citing an exclusion for “hostile or warlike action in time of peace or war … by any government or sovereign power,” according to the complaint Mondelez filed in court last fall, which Crain’s Chicago Business obtained. By blaming the Russians, the government gave Zurich an opening, but not necessarily an airtight argument: “Zurich’s invocation of a ‘hostile or warlike action’ exclusion to deny coverage for malicious ‘cyber’ incidents was … unprecedented,” Mondelez’s complaint asserted.

Source: thebulletin.org