The Association of British Insurers (ABI) has called for a national database of cyber incidents and attacks on businesses.

The anonymous record would contain details of business interruption losses, ransom demands, loss of confidential data, and damage to IT systems.

More information on cyber attacks could help grow the insurance market, says the ABI, giving more choice for businesses.

Some US states require firms to report cyber breaches, but a national database accessible to insurers would be a world first.

ABI Director-General Huw Evans believes cyber losses are the biggest threat to the country’s digital economy and more data is required.

“We have 350 years of fire data and 100 years of motor and aviation data, but we have just a few years of cyber data,” he said.

“But cyber is the biggest insurable risk that the industry will have to meet, and it is critical to the economy.

“If it is not a requirement to report these losses, then insurers are not going to have the data they need to provide the right cover.”