Data theft is the biggest threat to business reputations and 77% of mid to large companies intend to have some level of cyber insurance in place by next year, according to a US survey.

About 42% of respondents plan to buy or increase coverage in the coming year, the poll by Munich Re shows.

“Risk managers recognise there is an increasing possibility their company will experience a breach or loss of data, regardless of the steps they take to secure this data,” Munich Re America Senior VP Casualty Underwriting, Underwriting Services Gerry Finley said.

About 82% of survey respondents feel there are adequate cyber policies available to meet their needs.

Of the 23% that do not plan to buy cyber insurance, five out of six feel current offerings do not meet their needs.

Some 43% of respondents are reluctant to use or increase use of cloud software, because of data security risks.

Munich Re questioned more than 100 company risk managers at the Risk and Insurance Management Society annual conference in Denver in April.

Meanwhile, a report from internet security company McAfee estimates the global cost of cybercrime to be $US445 billion ($474 billion) a year.

In Australia, the cost has been estimated at 0.08% of GDP, while in New Zealand it is 0.09%. Germany tops the table at 1.6% of GDP.

The report says large-scale attacks in Australia have hit retailers, hotel groups, media companies, financial services companies and an airline, with losses averaging more than $US100 million ($106.53 million) per company.

The US, Europe and Asia lose the most from cybercrime, while Africa suffers least because hackers reap better rewards from richer countries, McAfee says.

“The cost of cybercrime will continue to increase as more business functions move online and as more companies and consumers around the world connect to the internet.”

Losses from intellectual property (IP) theft will rise as IP is used more in manufacturing, it says.

Last year the US Govern­ment notified 3000 companies about being hacked.

Governments should make serious, systematic efforts to collect and publish data on cybercrime, to help companies make better choices, McAfee says.