For companies and organizations, an attack by hackers can meanfinancial losses, corporate embarrassment and legal action. Forinsurers jumping into the brave new world of cybercrime insurance,it's free marketing for what could be a $10 billionopportunity.

High-profile computer breaches like the hack of theDemocratic National Committee and the Twitter swastika hack arereinforcing the need for protection against cyberthreats, andcompanies such as Allianz and Beazley are eager to step in.Insurers see coverage against hackers as one of their mostpromising market and estimate that premiums will triple over thenext four years.

“We are optimistic that it can develop into Allianz's and theindustry's next blockbuster,” Hartmut Mai, chief underwritingofficer for corporate lines at Allianz's commercial insurance arm,said in an interview. “Cyber insurance is our key growth area atthe moment.”