by Josh Chetwynd
North Dakota Insurance Commissioner Adam Hamm is helping shape cyber security guidelines both in the state and nationally, which is a big plus for local insurance business, according to Professional Insurance Agents of North Dakota Executive Director Steve Becher.
“I think it is good for North Dakota that our commissioner is involved at the highest levels on such an important topic for the insurance industry,” Becher said. “Having our own commission on the forefront gives us the opportunity to provide input on this important issue and help form the framework on how the insurance industry and consumers can handle this increased risk.”
Last week, Hamm played a central role in producing the insurance industry’s biggest statement on cybersecurity to date. As Cybersecurity Taskforce chair for the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, Hamm spearheaded the creation of a Cybersecurity Bill of Rights for insurance clients.
The document outlines six guidelines insurance professional should follow in protecting sensitive information collected from customers through the course of business. These include being aware of what personal information an insurer or agent has collected; making sure privacy policies are posted on websites; taking reasonable steps to protect information; giving notice if an unauthorized person has seen or stolen personal information; and providing identity theft protection if information is compromised.
Along with his work on the bill of rights, Hamm is also working in-state on the issue. The commissioner was one of 15 members of a new North Dakota task force focusing on cybersecurity that convened for the first time last week.
Despite all his efforts, the results of Hamm’s efforts on this matter has not been completely smooth sailing.
The bill of rights was originally released in the summer and had 12 points but was trimmed following feedback from the insurance community.
According to Becher, Hamm is a strong advocate in this area, but his organization will continue to push when he veers in an unwanted direction – particularly with the bill of rights.
“Commissioner Hamm does a great job of researching issues and getting input from all affected parties and I’m sure it will continue as we move forward,” he said. “[Still,] while [our organization] agrees that there must be a consistent and coordinated national approach to cybersecurity … we do have some concerns with the Cybersecurity Bill of Rights as it is currently written. [We] remain concerned that the revised bill of rights will lead to consumer confusion by suggesting that certain rights exist, when, in fact, they may not under current law. We will continue to work with commissioner Hamm, the NAIC, and our state taskforce to address these issues.”
