Fighting Cyberbullying

Chubb and Dbs Are United in Helping Families and Individuals Deal With the Consequences of Cyberbullying and Online Identity Theft.

- Wendy Kay

In today’s non-stop digital age, we are all vulnerable to cybercrime. While criminals focus on scams ranging from transaction fraud to hacking and piracy, millions of children are also victims, suffering from relentless cyberbullying, often in the haven of their own homes.

It’s a trend alarming parents, police and educators around the world, and while experts concede the crimes are almost impossible to eliminate, Chubb Asia Pacific in partnership with Singapore’s leading bank, DBS, is offering an insurance cover that will at least help deal with the consequences.

CyberSmart, launched in November last year, provides cover for victims affected by online bullying and identity theft. Underwritten by Chubb, the plan is distributed through DBS’s network.

In Singapore, three-quarters of children and teenagers have admitted to being bullied online, a disturbing figure for Chubb’s Regional President Paul McNamee. “It’s very aggressive, a real social issue that Chubb and DBS wanted to assist with,”

Paul explains. “CyberSmart covers expenses for trauma counselling and legal consultation and will help find that support. It also offers 24/7 IT and tech support when a computer has been hacked and assists with installing new virus protection.”

Identity theft, which affected 16.7 million victims globally in 2017, is also covered by CyberSmart. Claims can be made for loss of income, legal consultation and tech support.

So far, Chubb’s S$6 monthly CyberSmart plan is exclusive to Singapore, but Paul admits Chubb and DBS are looking at distributing the product regionally and beyond.