Bluefire Insurance

The last two years have definitely confirmed what you and the rest of the insurance industry have already felt. Cyber risk no longer occupies a niche coverage line, but instead functions as the fulcrum of nearly every serious core business risk event out there. Risk management as an independent agent is vital in your own business, as well as your clients’ concerns. Just about every firm is exposed to risk on a real-time basis. 

That is one reason to ensure the carriers and MGA’s you associate with are also cognizant of cyber risk and are taking proactive steps to protect you and your business. As a producer with Bluefire, you have the best and most up-to-date security available in the industry. 

Global analyses of cyber claims show that ransomware, business interruptions, and breaches climbed through 2024, with one major broker reporting a staggering 22% year-over-year increase in related incidents among its clients, according to a 2025 Report on the Cybersecurity Insurance Market from NAIC. 

As an independent agent, and especially if you’re transacting through online rating, carrier portals, etc., you need to realize that the trends in 2025 aren’t temporary. This is how things will function in the long run, where zero trust security models will the norm, and the regulatory environment will get tighter rather than looser. Learn more about the key trends driving the cybersecurity environment with Bluefire — your partner in the insurance industry. 

Trend 1: Rise in Cybersecurity Threats 

There’s no shortage of threats rising in frequency across the security landscape, both in corporate and government networks. The specific threats facing both sets of organizations include zero-day exploits in which an attacker uses unknown vulnerabilities to gain access or destroy critical digital infrastructure, deepfake attacks to synthesize fake audio or video to engage in social engineering and mislead human teams, and even state-sponsored attack vectors involving the destruction of financial infrastructure, as highlighted by recent breaches of U.S. financial agencies such as the Federal Reserve. 

Trend 2: The Increasing Role of AI in Cybersecurity 

While AI has become a productivity enhancer for corporates, it’s also leading to more sophisticated cybercrime. Companies have begun using AI for anomaly detection, incident response, and in desktop support, while attackers have started using it offensively for phishing operations and malware creation. 

Some of the specific risks introduced by AI include hallucinations and false positives, AI-generated phishing emails, and blind spots introduced by the use of gen AI in corporate or government environments. 

Trend 3: A Growth in Mobile Cybercrime 

Clients, producers, and CSRs now live in their phones, and attackers do too. Verizon’s 2024 and 2025 Mobile Security Index (MSI) reports show that most organizations believe mobile attacks are rising, with the vast majority increasing their mobile security budgets to keep up. In addition, modern mobile device management (MDM) and defensive tools are no longer enterprise-specific solutions, but table stakes for any-sized organization. 

Trend 4: Cloud and API Risks Will Command More Attention 

Insurance has rapidly moved from on-prem systems to cloud-native platforms and third-party APIs: Comparative raters, CRM integrations, payment gateways, e-signature tools, and policy admin systems all talk to each other behind the scenes. Reports on cyber insurance and financial-sector security repeatedly highlight supply-chain and third-party breaches as a growing source of claims and regulatory scrutiny. 

Trend 5: Role of Blockchain in Fraud Detection 

Blockchain is no longer just a buzzword in insurtech pitch decks. It’s slowly becoming a practical tool for decentralized identity (DID) models, smart contract claims automation that is run across a shared ledger and therefore tamper-resistant, and fraud detection by making claims histories immutable across carriers and intermediaries. While this isn’t something most local agencies will build themselves, it will affect how claims are investigated, how identity is verified, and what data regulators expect to see. 

Trend 6: Phishing Will Get Harder to Spot 

If your staff already struggles with spotting bad emails, the next wave will be worse. Cybercriminals may pose as your MGA or carrier underwriter, using familiar logos and sign-offs, to demand “urgent policy updates” or re-authentication. Staff are sent to a fake portal where they enter passwords or upload policyholder PII, handing the attacker live credentials and client data. 

Trend 7: The Impact of Remote Work on Cybersecurity and Insurance 

Hybrid work isn’t going away, even in traditionally office-heavy sectors like insurance brokerage. To handle this, more financial institutions are adopting zero-trust security models and Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA), requiring continuous verification of users and devices, not just trusting anything on a VPN. Any size company should look into these security tools for their own operations. 

Implications for Agencies: A World Defined by Cyber Risks 

Risk management for independent insurance agents isn’t exactly getting any easier. U.S. regulators and the NAIC are monitoring the cyber insurance market more closely, watching how carriers model accumulation risk and how insureds implement controls. Independent agents need to think about cyber both as an operational risk and a revenue opportunity. Here’s a quick list of items to focus on as an independent agent: 

• Train staff quarterly on phishing and social engineering. 

• Enforce MFA on email, AMS/CRM, carrier portals, and any remote-access tools. 

• Keep an up-to-date inventory of systems, vendors, and data flows. 

• Consider cyber E&O insurance in addition to traditional E&O to address data-related exposures. 

How Insurance Companies Can Respond to These Trends 

Carriers, MGAs, and independent agents all share responsibility for tightening cyber resilience. Key areas to focus on include response planning, vendor risk assessment, partnerships with Managed Security Service Providers (MSSPs), and realigning to a “zero trust” approach using ZTNA in the ideal environment. Even if you don’t deploy full ZTNA on day one, start with least-privilege access, strong identity verification, and segmentation of critical systems. 

Don’t Let Cyber Threats Derail Your Business and Partner With Bluefire 

At Bluefire, we can’t stop cyber risk in the year 2026. But we can help you manage your exposure. We work with independent agents to ensure that you have the tools to reflect today’s threat landscape. We help support strong controls, work with you to offer high-quality insurance products to your clients, and ensure the safety and stability of the post-sales process, including claims processing.  

If you’re re-evaluating your cybersecurity posture or looking to expand your cyber offerings, now is the time to connect with Bluefire and make digital resilience part of your core value proposition. Become a producer today! 

FAQs 

What Is the Biggest Cybersecurity Risk Facing Insurance Agents? 

For most agencies, the biggest near-term risk is credential theft via phishing, vishing, or compromised devices because a single stolen login to your email or policy systems can expose thousands of records and trigger both regulatory action and cyber insurance claims. 

Can Insurance Agents Be Held Liable for Cyber Breaches? 

Yes. Agents can face regulatory inquiries, contractual liability to carriers and MGAs, and E&O exposure if a breach is tied to inadequate controls, failure to follow data breach notification laws, or misrepresentations on cyber insurance applications 

How Can Independent Agents Protect Client Data Without a Dedicated IT Team? 

As a smaller agency, you should focus on the things that are easy to implement. That includes strong multi-factor authentication, sane and reasonable password policies, and managed endpoint protection at an absolute minimum. Cloud systems with built-in security are helpful here, too, since they take the pain of maintenance off your own in-house employees. External partners like MSPs and MSSPs are great for monitoring and patching problems. 

Should Insurance Agents Offer Cyber Insurance to Clients? 

Absolutely. As ransomware, mobile threats, and supply-chain attacks grow, cyber coverage is becoming a standard part of commercial insurance programs. Reports from major reinsurers show continued growth in cyber claims and premiums, even as organizations improve controls, which means demand for expert guidance is strong.