High Alpha Launches Cyber Risk Management, Insurance Company
(image courtesy of Trava Security)
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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowAn automated cyber risk management and insurance company has launched out of Indianapolis-based venture studio High Alpha. Trava Security says its platform is designed to bridge the gap between cyber risk management and cyber insurance for small and mid-size businesses. Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer Jim Goldman says the two had previously been disjointed because they were handled in two different ways by two different industries, and Trava creates a “one-stop shop.”
In an interview with Inside INdiana Business, Goldman said the company is passionate about helping small and mid-size businesses.
“Especially with the pandemic, more and more small businesses have been driven to digital transformation in a more rapid fashion than they may have planned to or wanted to,” said Goldman. “And they’re certainly not in a position to invest a lot in IT services or necessarily have the security know-how to property secure their digital storefronts and so that’s really what we’re trying to do.”
Trava cites the U.S. Small Business Administration, which says 88% of small business owners are afraid their business is vulnerable to a cyber attack.
Goldman says the platform starts with an assessment of the risk vulnerabilities within a company that need to be mitigated. Then, a virtual chief information security officer is used to mitigate those risks and once that’s done, any residual risk will be transferred to the cyber insurance arm.
Cyber insurance is broken down into two categories: first-party losses – the cost for a company to restore its cyber resources – and third-party losses, or the impact of a cyber incident on customers, vendors and more.
Goldman, a former vice president with Salesforce and ExactTarget, co-founded the company with Chief Technology Officer Rob Beeler, who previously led engineering teams at companies such as Carbonite, OpenText and Double-Take Software. The concept for the company was came through a partnership between High Alpha and TDF Ventures in San Francisco.
“Investments in cybersecurity point solutions are at an all-time high, yet breaches aren’t slowing down. We need a whole new approach with a holistic, integrated solution that can make cybersecurity accessible to everyone,” Matt Bressler, principal at TDF Ventures, said in a news release. “We began working with the High Alpha team around this idea and are excited to be officially launching the company with such an experienced team. We think this is the perfect team to build this unified platform and fill this gap.”
Goldman says the “one-stop shop” idea for the company is what makes it unique and important for businesses.
“That the company and the experts that are involved with assessing your risk and identifying your vulnerabilities and can also help you mitigate those vulnerabilities and then they know exactly your overall risk posture and because we know your overall risk posture, we can do a better job of tailoring your cyber insurance to your exact needs.”
Trava conducted a beta program earlier this year and says it recently released its product with the ability to offer cyber insurance in all 50 states.
Goldman says the company is passionate about helping small and mid-size businesses.