Power of attorney: How law firms can strengthen their cyber security
Imagine for a moment how you would conduct business if you were unable to communicate with your clients. What if you could not access your internal case management systems or client data? What if thousands — or millions — of pieces of that data were suddenly stolen and held for ransom?
Cybercrime is making hypothetical situations like these into increasingly common, costly realities for law firms. Sixty-two percent of all law firms in the UK experienced a cyber security incident in 2017, according to the PwC Law Firms Survey. That figure is up from 45 percent just a couple of years before.
The Logicforce Q4 2017 Law Firm Cyber Security Scorecard found that 62 percent of law firms do not have a dedicated information security professional, only 31 percent have formal cyber security training programs, and just 41 percent have formally documented cyber security policies.
Even firms in the business of offering cyber security expertise have not been immune to attacks. In the wake of the cyberattack against DLA Piper in June 2017, Peter Wright, chair of the Law Society’s Technology and Law Reference Group and Managing Director of DigitalLawUK, said if one of the largest law firms in the world lacks adequate safeguards to protect against a ransomware attack, it begs the question, “Who does?”
Designed specifically for law firms this whitepaper sheds light on the appeal of law firms to cyber criminals, the cyber risk landscape in 2018 and the steps law firms can take to strengthen their cyber security.
Topics covered include:
• The price of a breach.
• Security safeguards for small organisations.
• Why GDPR makes a response plan critical.
• Cyber coverage gaps.
• How to secure your firm for the future.