Another Look at Cyber Security for Law Firms | April 2013

In the April 2013 article, Law Firms: Cyber Target #1, Julius Meltzner writes about how and why lawyers are increasingly the focus of cyber-thieves:

“…lawyers don’t like taking instructions from anybody, particularly their less well paid underlings who are responsible for network security. They’re impatient. In some firms the rainmakers have nixed even simple steps, like requiring a password on mobile devices that connect with the firm’s servers. They couldn’t be bothered. Privileged with secrets, lawyers are the perfect targets.”

A few essential steps are recommended to get started on better protecting data in law firm settings:

1. Systematically, take advantage of Microsoft’s monthly release of security patches.
   
2. Do not give administrator privileges to those who don’t require it.
   
3. Properly manage and update anti-virus software and firewalls.
   
4. Use strong passwords that contain numbers, letters and punctuation.
   

Another take on the critical issue of information security in law firms was most recently provided here in Data Security for Law Firms (November 2012.) 

---

The Canadian Lawyers Insurance Association provides loss prevention information solely for the benefit of CLIA insured lawyers. The content and links provided in Loss Prevention eBytes are intended as resources to qualified lawyers who should exercise due care and their professional judgment in adapting or making use of any content.