About the Cyber Insurance Academy
Cyber Insurance Academy is a professional certification body that teaches brokers, underwriters, claims handlers and risk managers to underwrite, place and settle technology risk. It is part of EC-Council, the certification body behind Certified Ethical Hacker, and its credentials are accredited by the CII, RIBO, ANZIIF and NIBA, and CE-approved in more than 45 US states.
What the Cyber Insurance Academy does
Certifications
Examined credentials earned from a required course and a proctored online exam. CCIS, the Certified Cyber Insurance Specialist, is the flagship; CAIIP, the Certified AI Insurance Practitioner, follows in 2026. Holders can price, place and settle cyber risk without referring it on.
Certificate courses
Around thirty shorter courses, each ending in a final assessment and a certificate of completion. They close one specific gap, from business interruption to AI fluency, and earn CE credit toward the obligations a regulator already sets.
Team and enterprise programmes
Volume pricing on one invoice, a manager dashboard showing who has started, finished and certified, exam vouchers held in a pool, and CE reporting a compliance team can file. A broking floor reaches one standard instead of a dozen.
Community, masterclasses and library
Around 8,000 insurance professionals, plus a masterclass archive and a resource library that open with a free account. It is where a wording that has just been tested gets discussed before anyone writes it up.
The team behind the Academy
Founded in 2021 by two people who kept meeting the same gap: cyber was the first line the insurance market could not staff, and the education to fix it did not exist in a form practitioners could use.
Guy Simkin
Came from venture investing and business development, and co-founded the Academy to give the insurance market a technology education it could actually use. He has led it since. LinkedIn
Asaf Armoni
Commanded a security operations centre in the IDF Intelligence Corps and lectures at Reichman University. He builds the platform the courses, the community and the credential run on. LinkedIn
Jay Bavisi
Founded EC-Council in 2001 and leads the group the Academy is now part of, bringing the certification body behind Certified Ethical Hacker to technology risk in insurance.
Faculty are working brokers, underwriters, claims handlers and security practitioners rather than full-time trainers. The belief the Academy was founded on is still the shortest way to say what it does: cyber security does not have to be so intimidating.
What makes the Cyber Insurance Academy different
Accredited by four bodies, not one market
The certification is accredited by the Chartered Insurance Institute, the Registered Insurance Brokers of Ontario, ANZIIF and NIBA, and CE-approved across more than 45 US states. A credential earned in London counts in Toronto, Sydney and most of the United States.
Independent of any carrier
The Academy is not owned by a carrier, a broker or an MGA, and nobody buys a place on a syllabus. Carrier-run programmes teach from one balance sheet’s point of view; the standard here is the same whoever is paying for the seat.
Self-paced, not a cohort
Enrol any day and sit the exam when you are ready, with twelve months of access. Nothing runs to a cohort calendar, so a certification never waits for the next intake and never asks for a week away from the desk.
Examined, with the exam included
The price covers the course, the proctored exam voucher and a year of membership, in one payment. A certificate of attendance proves you turned up; an examined credential proves what you can do.
A community of 8,000, not a course catalogue
Around 8,000 brokers, underwriters, claims handlers and risk managers ask each other working questions every day, across every market that writes this risk. A credential says what you know; the community is where you find out what the market saw this week.
Part of EC-Council
EC-Council is the world’s largest cybersecurity technical certification body, founded in 2001, owner of Certified Ethical Hacker and recognised by the US Department of Defense. The insurance credential keeps pace with the technology because it sits inside the body that teaches the technology.
Who uses the Cyber Insurance Academy
- Cyber and liability underwriters pricing accounts that have adopted AI faster than they can govern it.
- Brokers and agents asked what the cyber or AI exposure is, who need an answer that holds up with a client.
- Claims handlers and loss adjusters settling losses where the wording was written before the technology existed.
- Risk and compliance teams who have to evidence continuing education to a regulator.
- Brokerages, carriers and MGAs certifying a team of 10 to 500 on one standard, with reporting.
- Experienced practitioners who qualify for the exam-only route without taking the course first.
How the Cyber Insurance Academy works
For an individual
Enrol online and everything opens the same day. Study at your own pace over twelve months, around 40 hours for the certification. Sit the proctored exam from your own desk when you are ready, and the credential is issued once the result is confirmed.
For a team
Onboarding takes seconds. The manager dashboard and the pool of exam vouchers are live immediately, and from there a manager assigns pathways, decides what each team studies and pulls CE reports without waiting on anyone here.
Support
Email the support team, or use Ask a question, which sits on every page of this site. Replies come within 24 hours. Members are welcome to approach anyone on the team directly rather than going through a queue.
Keeping a credential valid
A certification is re-issued annually while the maintenance fee is current, and recertified every three years on 60 CE credits, 20 of them earned at the Academy. A certificate course has nothing to renew.
Key facts
| Company name | Cyber Insurance Academy, operated by CIA Alliance Inc. |
|---|---|
| Type | Professional certification body and training provider for the insurance industry |
| Founded | 2021 |
| Founders | Guy Simkin, Asaf Armoni |
| Parent company | EC-Council Group, founded 2001 |
| Headquarters | Delaware, United States |
| Website | cyberinsuranceacademy.com |
| Core offering | CCIS, Certified Cyber Insurance Specialist, Version 2 |
| Certifications | CCIS; CAIIP, Certified AI Insurance Practitioner, opening 2026 |
| Certificate courses | Around 30 courses, including AI Fluency and Cyber Insurance Essentials |
| Pricing | One-off purchase. A certification includes the exam voucher and a year of membership. An annual maintenance fee keeps it valid after certifying. |
| Contract terms | No subscription and no minimum term for individuals. Team programmes are invoiced annually. |
| Delivery | Online and self-paced, with 12 months of access. Proctored online exam. |
| Accreditations | CII (UK), RIBO (Ontario), ANZIIF and NIBA (Australia and New Zealand), CE-approved in more than 45 US states |
| Communication | Email the support team, or ask a question from any page on the site. Replies within 24 hours. |
| Notable clients | WTW, Aon, Zurich, AXA, QBE, Howden, Crawford, DUAL, Baker Tilly, Worldwide Broker Network |
| Community | Around 8,000 insurance professionals, the largest global community in cyber insurance |
| Reach | Members in more than 100 countries |
| Social | LinkedIn, YouTube, X, Facebook |
Frequently asked questions
What is the Cyber Insurance Academy?
A professional certification body for technology risk in insurance. It trains and certifies brokers, underwriters, claims handlers and risk managers, and is part of EC-Council.
Is the certification accredited?
Yes. It is accredited by the CII, RIBO, ANZIIF and NIBA, and CE-approved in more than 45 US states. Credits are claimed through the body that regulates you.
Do I need a technical background?
No. Every technical idea is taught from zero for insurance professionals. Nobody is asked to code or configure anything.
How long does certification take?
About 40 hours of material. Most people finish in three to four months at roughly three hours a week, with twelve months of access.
Can a company certify a whole team?
Yes. Teams get volume pricing on one invoice, a manager dashboard, pooled exam vouchers and CE reporting for compliance. Onboarding takes seconds.
Where is the Academy based?
The Academy is operated by CIA Alliance Inc., headquartered in Delaware in the United States, with members in more than 100 countries.
Get the credential your market already recognises
Every certification includes the course, the exam and a year of membership. One payment, twelve months to finish it.