Reducing Cyber Risk Liability for Churches

In a blog post earlier this summer, we explored some reasons why cyber liability insurance for non-profits is necessary, citing that your nonprofit clients typically have a lot more at stake financially than their for-profit counterparts. As stated by sources from the Church Law & Tax Blog, the potential liabilities associated with technology use requires a good risk management plan, especially for churches.

Most churches today utilize a website, social media pages, electronic fund transfers, and online databases with sensitive information. A simple computer virus could be enough to financially devastate your church administrator clients. For example, they could experience what’s called a first party loss if the virus infects their church’s network and system, causing significant loss or corruption of data. Or they could even experience a third-party loss, where someone on the church staff inadvertently spreads the virus to others outside the church’s ministry.

The above examples are just a couple scenarios of the cyber risk liability for churches that exists. Other cyber risks include trademark and copyright infringement. It may be hard to imagine a church facing a legal issue such as this; however a problem could arise from not getting certain permissions to repeat and publish sermons, musical performances, images, video clips, and other forms of intellectual property that can be distributed instantaneously across the internet.

So how can your clients work on reducing cyber risk liability for churches? It starts by limiting access by church staff to the church’s network and webpage. Your client should establish administration access so that only a few key people may update the site and make changes to it. Another step churches can take towards risk reduction is employing a gatekeeper for all blogging or online newsletter submissions. These types of mediums are breeding grounds for defamation, libel, and slander claims.

At Charity First, we are committed to helping you place coverage for your nonprofit clients and helping you reduce cyber risk liability for churches. Our mission is to provide coverages tailored to meet the unique needs of this market segment. Please contact us today to learn more at (800) 352-2761.