Security risk

New Haven, CT- Metaserver, Inc., a leading provider of business process integration (BPI) solutions for the insurance industry, announced it has launched its new iConnect agency interface solution for Property and Casualty carriers. The first of several solutions designed specially for insurance carriers, iConnect P&C is compatible with and extends the capabilities provided by leading vendors in the insurance space such as ChoicePoint, CSC, Duck Creek, ISO, IVANS and others.

Brunswick, Maine--Allenbrook Inc., a leading provider of processing software and consulting services for the Property & Casualty insurance industry, today announced a partnership with Whitehill Technologies, Inc. Whitehill provides companies the ability to extract system data, reformat and automatically distribute the resulting output. The integration of Whitehill's cutting-edge technology with Allenbrook's proven software enables carriers to rise above competitors trapped in paper-intensive processes. This partnership will also increase a carrier's ability to meet stringent reporting requirements with ease and cost-efficiency.

WELLESLEY HILLS, Mass. -- Sun Life Financial has announced the addition of a new single life policy to its portfolio of universal life insurance products.

HARTFORD, Conn.-- Travelers Property Casualty Corp. today announces the availability of its new master policy to cover identity theft expenses. Financial institutions or other commercial businesses can purchase this policy on behalf of their account holders or customers, or for use as an employee benefit offering. The new policy furnishes expense reimbursement limits from $500 up to $25,000 per covered person to assist in the restoration of his or her financial health and credit history that has been damaged by identity theft.

GREENSBORO, N.C. - Jefferson Pilot Corporation today announced that it has agreed to acquire the U.S. group life, disability and dental business of The Canada Life Assurance Company, an indirect subsidiary of Great-West Lifeco Inc. The reinsurance transaction is expected to close during the first quarter of 2004, following regulatory approvals. Jefferson Pilot will be making a commitment of approximately $200 million to the business, and the transaction is expected to provide Jefferson Pilot modest earnings accretion over the next 12 months after financing and transition costs, and to be more accretive in following years.

EVANSTON, Ill. -- Beacon Research announced today that it has been selected to provide a customized front-end application for BISYS' producer Web site. The application will enable BISYS-affiliated agents and brokers to easily and quickly select the most appropriate fixed annuities for their clients.

Newark, Calif. --Risk Management Solutions (RMS), the world's leading provider of products and services for the management of catastrophe risk, performed the risk analysis for the Pylon Ltd securitization covering damage from windstorm for a major European electricity supplier. The innovative securitization is the first for a European corporate and the first such deal worldwide to cover transmission and distribution (T&D) risk.

Aggressive year-end sales efforts by North American life insurers buoyed 2003 year-end results with December application activity showing a 4.7% year-over-year increase according to the MIB Life Index. December application activity in the U.S. and Canada increased 4.9% and 3.5% respectively compared to the same period last year. Year-end strength appreciably buffered overall North American fourth quarter results which declined only 1.3%; averting more problematic declines observed in the prior three quarters. Year-to-date (YTD) results depict a challenging year with U.S. application activity down 4.1% YTD and Canadian activity down 1.4% YTD compared to application activity last year.

HARRISBURG, Pa.--Pennsylvania Insurance Commissioner Diane Koken said today that Pennsylvanians may see a reduction in the premiums on new life insurance policies because of a change in the mortality tables used to calculate the insurance premium.

CHICAGO, Jan 12, 2004 -- Fort Dearborn Life Insurance Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of Health Care Service Corporation (operating as Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of New Mexico), a Mutual Legal Reserve Company, has acquired Omaha Life Insurance Company from Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nebraska. Fort Dearborn Life is part of the Preferred Financial Group which is comprised of Medical Life Insurance Company (Ohio), Colorado Bankers Life Insurance Company (Colorado) and Fort Dearborn Life Insurance Company (Illinois).

Conshohocken, PA- eMoney Advisor, a leading provider of wealth planning solutions, today announced that First Commonwealth Financial Corporation has selected eMoney's AdvisorPlatform as the basis for its wealth management and planning services offered through First Commonwealth Financial Advisors, First Commonwealth Trust Company and First Commonwealth Insurance Agency. The eMoney system will be used by advisors throughout these affiliates to provide more comprehensive services to their clients.

DxCG Inc., an independent provider of predictive modeling software for health care organizations, today announced that Tufts Health Plan has signed a multi-year contract to license DxCG's RiskSmart, its Web-based suite of predictive modeling tools. Waltham, Mass.-based Tufts Health Plan joins other leading Massachusetts health plans, providers and payers using DxCG's predictive modeling tools to improve the financial forecasting of its health care operations.

SAN FRANCISCO--Identity Theft 911, a leading provider of identity theft education, defense, and resolution services, and AIG Affinity Group Services, a division of AIG, the world's leading international insurance and financial services organization, are working together to help individual consumers, enterprise customers, and financial institutions to deal with the growing problem of identity theft.

LONDON-- Lloyd's of London announced today that the market will have the capacity to underwrite 14.9 billion pounds Sterling (pounds) of business in 2004, or $26.7 billion. This figure maintains 2003's capacity level of 14.9 billion pounds, or $23.2 billion.

Duck Creek Technologies Inc., a provider of product management software and services to the insurance industry, today announced that Irving, Texas-based program administrator, Innovative Risk Management, Inc. (IRM) has selected Duck Creek's EXAMPLE Platform. IRM will implement the entire Duck Creek product suite including: EXAMPLE Express(TM), EXAMPLE Author(TM), EXAMPLE Server(TM), ManuScript Templates(TM), and Example TransACTTM.

HARTFORD, Conn.--Travelers Life & Annuity today announced the availability of its Annuity Funded Life and Muni Max products on pTeraDac Corporation's WebStory, a customized Web-based presentation system that links directly from Travelers WinFlex and Travelers Life Illustration Systems. WebStory Advanced Marketing Presentation System provides text, schematics and graphics to help the producer develop and present sales strategies in a format that facilitates the client's ease of understanding.

HARTFORD, Conn.--The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. today announced it has completed the purchase of CNA Financial Corporation's group life and accident, and short-term and long-term disability businesses for approximately $500 million in cash. The transaction closed on December 31, 2003.

Barring another terrorist attack on U.S. soil, or some other catastrophic event, U.S. insurance companies are cautiously optimistic about the economy in 2004. As a result, IT budgets in the industry on average are increasing slightly this year.Research from Celent, Datamonitor, Forrester and TowerGroup suggests insurers will add as much as 10% to their IT budgets this year, with an average increase between 2.5% and 6.7%.

In the largest-ever civil insurance fraud case filed in the state of New York, Allstate Insurance Co., Encompass Insurance and Nationwide Mutual Insurance Co. last month filed a RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization Act) lawsuit in the Supreme Court of New York.After 21 months of investigation, Allstate filed the complaint against 74 individuals whom the Northbrook, Ill.-based carrier alleges were either principals or employees of-or otherwise involved with-a group of companies established for the sole purpose of generating hundreds of millions of dollars in fraudulent insurance claims.

Insurers are turning introspective. They lived a charmed life when healthy investment returns covered for a lack of efficiency within their operations. Now, they have shifted their focus from asset management back to insurance basics.A new survey performed by the global insurance services practice of New York City-based Deloitte notes that insurers have shifted their focus after a protracted period of low interest rates and volatility in the equity markets.