Before you Bind: Prove it!

How to Validate Your Security Controls Before Binding Insurance

Cyber insurance isn’t a safety net if your controls only exist on paper. Underwriters are no longer asking what you own—they’re asking what actually works. Before you bind a policy, you need to validate that your security controls function under real-world pressure, not just during audits or questionnaires. The difference can determine whether a claim is paid… or disputed.

Here’s how to validate your controls before it matters.

Tip #1 - Test Controls Against Real Attack Scenarios

Don’t rely on policy language or screenshots. Simulate ransomware entry paths—phishing, exposed RDP, credential reuse—and verify controls trigger, alert, and respond as expected.

Tip #2 - Verify Evidence, Not Assumptions

If you can’t produce logs, timestamps, alerts, and response actions, the control may as well not exist. Underwriters and claim investigators care about proof, not intent.

“The law is concerned less with intent than with the consequences of conduct.”

— Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr.

Tip #3 - Confirm Detection and Response

Detection without response is just early awareness of failure. Validate that alerts lead to containment, isolation, and escalation—automatically or operationally.

Tip #4 - Pressure-Test Identity & Access Controls

MFA, privileged access, and account lifecycle management are frequent claim failure points. Validate enforcement, coverage, and exception handling—not just configuration.

Tip #5 - Align Controls to Policy Language

Many denied claims come down to misalignment between stated controls and policy representations. Validate that what you claim in underwriting questionnaires matches reality—exactly.

Closing: Insurance Rewards Preparedness, Not Optimism

Cyber insurance is no longer a leap of faith—it’s a contract based on trust and verification. Validating your security controls before binding coverage protects more than your policy; it protects your ability to recover when it matters most.

If your controls haven’t been tested under pressure, they haven’t truly been validated. Call SkySec today for Pre-Bind, Post-Incident, or Ransomware Readiness assessments and support today!