Quick, your Law firm needs Cybersecurity!

Law companies operate in an increasingly hostile digital environment. Cybersecurity is a major concern for all industries nowadays, and law offices are not an exception. Moreover, law firms represent high-value targets to hackers and cybercriminals. Trade secrets, intellectual property, merger and acquisition details, personal information, and other privileged data are all examples of valuable information cybercriminals would love to get their hands on.

Legal companies’ gradual adoption of cloud-based services has brought a great deal of commercial and operational benefits and has also increased attacks from cybercriminals. So, the risk of cyberattacks and data breaches has never been more prevalent for law firms, and the potential consequences have never been higher. What motivates cybercriminals? Hackers are predominantly motivated by financial gain. They use different attack methods, but the most common ones are ransomware, phishing emails, denial of service attacks, and sophisticated human manipulation to get what they want.

How to mitigate risks that can potentially destroy the business and cause lots of problems to your law company? Let’s overview the five most important steps to complete.

1. Create and implement a data security policy.

Most security breaches begin with non-tech failure. It is not a surprise that the human factor plays a crucial role in sensitive data protection. That’s why it is critically important to make a clear, easy-to-follow plan for data security and share it with all employees. The second important step is to invest in regular training for your team members. Implementing an ongoing security awareness training program for all attorneys and staff will help them identify and avoid scam attempts.

2. Secure your devices.

Enforce multi-factor authentication wherever possible. Strong passwords are still critical but are not enough. On top of this, there is an increased need for mobile data security as more and more legal work is done remotely. Consider using Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) to encrypt your internet traffic and enforce security-related procedures such as implementing a Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) policy.

3. Conduct regular cybersecurity assessments.

The weaknesses in your law firm’s data security can be easily overlooked. Regular cybersecurity audits help identify security vulnerabilities, gaps in technology, policy, and behavior. This mitigates risks in time. A cybersecurity assessment is a complex procedure that requires experienced cybersecurity professional’s involvement.

4. Assure the regulation compliance.

Law firms’ operations are regulated by a set of security standards on the federal level. It compares, for instance, to the federal statute HIPAA for healthcare. The commentary to Rule 1.1 of the Model Rules of Professional Conduct directs attorneys to “keep abreast of changes in the law and its practice, including the benefits and risks associated with relevant technology.”

5. Partner with a reliable MSP to guarantee your Cybersecurity.

A partnership with an experienced cybersecurity provider helps you to get hackers out of your nightmares. Consider outsourcing your Cybersecurity to experts, especially if you run a small or mid-sized law company. Remember that law firm cyber threats change constantly, and you need real experts who keep up with it.

Discover more about our cybersecurity expertise and services and contact us to ensure your reliable protection. Click here for a here free proposal.