Lawyers are failing at cybersecurity, says ABA TechReport 2019
Lawyers are failing at cybersecurity, says ABA TechReport 2019
Lawyers are failing at cybersecurity, says ABA TechReport 2019
Lawyers are failing on cybersecurity, according to the American Bar Association #Legal Technology Resource Center’s ABA TechReport 2019.
“In fact, the results are shocking and reflect little, if any, positive movement in the past year or even in the past few years,” reads the article on cybersecurity released Wednesday. “The lack of effort on security has become a major cause for concern in the profession.”
The annual report looks at how attorneys use all kinds of technology in their practices. Articles on cloud computing, cybersecurity and websites and marketing were released free online. There are six more articles that will be released Wednesdays through Dec. 18.
The survey found that the most popular security measure being used by 35% of respondents was secure socket layers, which encrypt computer communications, including web traffic. Only 27% make local data backups. Since 2018, the number of respondents reading vendor privacy policies fell from 38% to 28%. While a mere 23% investigated a vendor’s history, even though 94% said vendor reputation mattered when deciding who to contract with.
Meanwhile, slightly more than a quarter of respondents (26%) reported their firm had had a security breach.
Among other findings, the 2019 survey reports that lawyers using cloud-based technology increased slightly, from 55% to 58% since the 2018 report. Only 25% of respondents reported that they are reviewing ethics opinions related to cloud technology. Ironically, the survey indicates that lawyers are tepid about the cloud because of cybersecurity concerns.
Description
Lawyers are failing at cybersecurity, says ABA TechReport 2019
Hugh Taylor
Hugh Taylor is a Certified Information Security Manager (CISM). In addition to editing Journal of Cyber Policy, he writes about cybersecurity, compliance and enterprise technology for such clients as Microsoft, IBM, SAP, HPE, Oracle, Google and Advanced Micro Devices. Prior to launching his freelance writing career, he served in executive roles at Microsoft, IBM and several venture-backed technology startups.