National News

Microsoft Says it Caught Hackers From China, Russia and Iran Using its AI Tools

State-backed hackers from Russia, China, and Iran have been using tools from Microsoft-backed OpenAI to hone their skills and trick their targets, according to a report published on Wednesday. Microsoft said in its report it had tracked hacking groups affiliated …

Lingering Inflation Risks Keep Fed Officials in Wait-and-See Mode on Rate Cuts

The Federal Reserve entered 2024 within spitting distance of its inflation goal. But that’s not quite close enough for policymakers. The risk that inflation could remain stuck above their 2% target is guiding Fed officials’ preference to keep interest rates …

Markets/Coverages: Marsh’s D&O Facility Provides Up to $75M of Capacity

Insurance broker Marsh announced that its D&O Echo facility is now offering clients with enhanced directors and officers insurance protection, in order to provide greater financial stability amid continued volatile market conditions and fluctuating insurance rates. Available to Marsh clients …

Continued Growth for Surplus Lines in 2023 as Premiums Up 14.6%

The excess and surplus lines market continued to grow in 2023, with premium reaching nearly $73 billion according to data from 15 state surplus lines office release by the Wholesale & Specialty Insurance Association (WSIA). 2023 premiums reflected a 14.6% …

US Seeks More Than $1 Billion From Collapsed SVB for Taxes

The US Internal Revenue Service is seeking to recover about $1.4 billion in taxes it claims are owed by Silicon Valley Bank, the regional lender that failed last year. The federal tax agency claims the California-based lender owes both corporate …

Prudential Reports Unauthorized Access to Its Computer Systems

Prudential Financial has disclosed a hacker gained unauthorized access to its systems earlier this month. In a Feb. 13 filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Prudential said that on Feb. 5 it detected a threat actor — believed …

Commercial Real Estate Trouble Evident in Fading Downtown Construction

When Rahm Emanuel ran Chicago and wanted to boast about the health of the city, the then-mayor pointed to the number of construction cranes across the skyline — 60 at the end of 2017. Almost five years after he left …

AIG General Insurance Q4 Income Up 19% on Underwriting, Investments

American International Group (AIG) during the fourth quarter 2023 recorded underwriting income of $642 million within its General Insurance segment — a slight increase from $635 million during the same quarter the prior year. Adjusted pretax income (APTI) in the …

Viewpoint: The Cyber Risk Pendulum

Privacy risk is so 2014, right? Ten years ago, numerous retail and healthcare companies were hit with data breaches related to the exposure of credit card or healthcare data. Given many data breach claims, which included fines by state attorney …

Nearly 75% of Employers Don’t Have AI Protocols for Internal Communications: Study

Despite organizations’ increased adoption of artificial intelligence (AI), 71% don’t provide internal guidance on when, where or how to use the technology, according to Gallagher’s 2023/24 State of the Sector report. Drawing on insights from more than 2,300 communication and …

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