Kannan is Senior Vice President & Global Head - Insurance at Infosys.
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The insurance industry runs on a complex feedback loop of customer trust and advocacy. Individuals and businesses alike turn to their insurance providers not only during exigencies but also to understand the risk landscape before undertaking a project or endeavor.
In a fast-digitalizing world, this equation of trust must be built through the medium of online interactions. As the number of online users increases, with exponential activity, so do attack surfaces proliferate, creating a breeding ground for hackers, phishers and scammers galore.
So, the overarching question I believe needs attention is this: How can insurance companies make sure they grow and retain their customer base, protect their privacy and provide accurate, accessible and digestible information in a world of content overload? Quite a task to contend with.
Why Digital Trust Is Pivotal To The Insurance Ecosystem
Before we dive into this, it is necessary to establish the centrality of digital trust to the operational success of all companies in general and insurance providers in particular. To provide improved products that keep up with industry standards and live up to customer expectations, insurers must keep an open line of communication with customers.
A constant flow of feedback, word-of-mouth recommendations and positive digital sentiment is essential for companies to gain industry recognition. This can only be achieved when customers feel seen, valued and protected. Digital trust is the foundation upon which such a mutually beneficial relationship can be sturdily built.
Protecting Digital Privacy
Tracking consent pop-ups, telemarketing calls selling insurance at dirt cheap premiums, personal loan offers—customers today are bombarded with demands to divulge their information, while watching their autonomy over their data erode each day. Scammers’ communications are almost indistinguishable from genuine representatives, and receiving incessant alerts from reputed companies can seriously damage the implicit trust that customers place in these organizations when sharing their information.
Governments and corporations are major determinants in helping citizens regain their autonomy over their data. While it is vital for companies to comply with government-mandated digital privacy legislation, they must also actively advocate for data privacy standards to rise in their respective industries. With insurance, in particular, any perceived mishandling of private information or dark patterns—that is, covertly using personal data to benefit the company while putting the customer at a disadvantage—can torpedo the trust factor, making it exceedingly difficult to rebuild.
To show their commitment to supporting progressive and beneficial data privacy laws, insurers can use existing data, as well as obtain additional data through surveys to publish detailed research papers and reports. This is a transparent way of reassuring customers that their data is being used for benign purposes—to improve awareness around digital privacy and cultivate practices that prevent unauthorized parties from accessing valuable information.
The Ripples Of AI And Quantum Computing
It is no secret that AI is transforming cyberspace into a minefield of potential breaches and threats. In continuation to the above note on monitoring and restricting access to personal data, insurance companies should also proactively contribute to the ongoing discourse on generative AI regulation.
While generative AI will undoubtedly play a major role in enhancing operational speed, accuracy and trust by accelerating claims processes, personalizing recommendations and improving overall customer experiences, there are valid concerns regarding its financial and ethical fidelity. Combined with the rise of complex quantum algorithms produced by cryptographically relevant quantum computers, which can break through traditional cybersecurity fortresses in milliseconds, the reliability of encryption as a modern-day data protection method is quickly being whittled down.
Therefore, insurance companies must, without delay, invest manpower and resources into developing quantum-safe algorithms that will ensure that the confidentiality of their data is maintained and minimize the risk of crippling attacks and leaks.
Furthermore, obtaining a DMARC certification (Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting and Conformance) is indispensable in an era of unpredictability and misidentification. Fulfilling these criteria paves the way for companies to receive Verified Mark Certificates, a further stamp of approval that customers can rely on to evade email-based attacks.
Humans Trust Humans
Finally, while educating customers about the latest regulatory standards and emphasizing your stance on protecting their interests, it is key to do so in a humane manner. Jargon is the surest enemy of trust. I must emphasize the need for insurance companies to lighten the mood and simplify their content in a way that appeals to the layperson without seeming too pressurizing or formidable.
Concise information not only minimizes the need for endless follow-ups but also reduces the need for physical visits—an essential step in democratizing access to financial services. Marketing efforts, in particular, must not be intrusive and overbearing, as they so often are across this industry, but should be helpful, insightful and inviting in a way that gives customers the choice to engage as per their willingness and convenience.
Striking the right balance between human intervention and AI assistance is the formula for success in a world where people seek validation, connection and efficiency.
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