4th Circuit Case Repercussions For Cyber-Insurance

On March 24, 2016 the Fourth Circuit heard oral arguments in Travelers Indemnity Co. v. Portal Healthcare Solutions, No. 14-1944 (4th Cir. Mar. 24, 2016). This potentially precedent-setting case tackles the issue of whether traditional commercial general liability ("CGL") insurance policies provide coverage for liability arising out of cyber-security issues, such as a failure to secure confidential customer data.

The CGL policies at issue in the case provide coverage for "those sums that the insured becomes legally obligated to pay as damages because of 'personal injury' . . . to which this insurance applies." One of the subject policies defines "personal injury" to include, inter alia, "Oral, written or electronic publication of material that . . . gives unreasonable publicity to a person's private life." The other subject policy defines "personal injury" to include, inter alia, "Oral or written publication, including publication by electronic means, of