Other Views of 9/11's Effect on Insurance and IT

As the anniversary of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks approaches, analysts of all stripes are examining how their industries have changed as a result of those terror attacks, including our editor.

At the time, 9/11 was the largest cumulative claims payout in global insurance history, producing insured losses of about $32.5 billion, or $40 billion (in 2010 dollars), according to the Insurance Information Institute. (Hurricane Katrina passed it a few years later with total losses in 2010 dollars of $45 billion). I.I.I. president Robert Hartwig gets more in-depth about the changes wrought by 9/11 in a video from the site today:

Meanwhile, on the information technology side, the big takeaway from the attacks was the need for a business continuity and recovery plan that accounts for the potential of sudden, widespread interruption or destruction of systems, according to an article in PC World.

For example, Keith Payne, IT security officer at Javitch, Block & Rathbone tells the publication, "…no longer are the days of backup tapes being moved off-site weekly; now mirrored systems are maintained with geographical separation."

PC World also cites research noting that cloud storage and disaster recovery remain high-growth areas in the IT industry.

Nathan Golia is senior editor of Insurance & Technology. He joined the publication in 2010 as associate editor and covers all aspects of the nexus between insurance and information technology, including mobility, distribution, core systems, customer interaction, and risk ... View Full Bio