Legal Field IT Specialists CEO, Robert Finley, answering some questions from firms regarding how much security is really needed to thwart attacks:
How much IT security does my firm really need to have in place? We already have a firewall and antivirus, so isn't that enough?
Unfortunately, managing partners frequently assume that basic mechanisms like a firewall are enough to protect their IT systems and case data. However, the sad reality is that it's simply not true. To help improve your network and online systems from cyber-attack, I'll be providing some practical tips to help you strengthen the safety of your law firm’s critical data and infrastructure.
For starters, one area to consider improving is training for your staff. Often, the greatest security threats your firm faces stems from your own staff. Especially, in the IT space, it is widely known that employees who do not follow proper protocol can be the weakest security link in your practice.
Why is your staff the largest security vulnerability? It is because they are subject to well-targeted ransomware attacks, which only escalate should the targeted firm pay any money to the attacker. Eighty-one percent of cybersecurity incidents are caused by employee negligence. Perhaps an employee uses weak administrative sign-in credentials or even shares credentials with other staff. Maybe a laptop which wasn't fully encrypted was stolen or lost. Or maybe the employee clicked on a phony email, attachment, link or download, exposing the computer and network to malicious software. No matter the reason, it spells big problems for law firms.
Some best practices to review include:
- Requiring unique and strong passwords for each employee
- Regularly changing passwords
- Verifying security on new and existing computers
- Continuously training existing as well as new employees
Because the digital landscape is constantly changing, there are countless variables that, if not addressed, will leave your firm vulnerable. So, you need to always be checking for new vulnerabilities. This is probably not the reason you started your legal career, so have a great IT security resource in your corner who can implement these security practices on your behalf.
If you would like assistance with implementing these security precautions for your firm call us today. Legal Field IT Specialists provides tailored IT support services to law firms to protect your firm from the dangers of online threats as well as working with you to ensure that your staff is highly productive & efficient which, in turn, increases your firm's profitability as a whole.
Phone: (678) 926-9192
Web: www.LFITS.com
