Cyber Security Key Priority for Legal Sector, says Lifeline IT

Lifeline IT’s resident cyber security expert Daniel was recently a keynote speaker at a global legal event in Amsterdam.

Speaking to partners and senior representatives attending the Euro-American Lawyers Group (EALG), Daniel was invited to offer his expertise on the business-critical issue of cyber security – a major threat to the legal industry.

Daniel explains why the legal sector is a key target and what lessons all businesses can learn from the cyber landscape.

Explained Daniel: “Law firms are the most attacked of all businesses and there are several reasons for this. Firstly, they hold a lot of client data, which is a valuable commodity for cyber criminals. Secondly, they are often holding client’s money and financial information as they manage transactions on behalf of companies and individuals. And thirdly, they have a lot of confidential data. All these things create a perfect storm for cyber attackers.”

“Things are becoming a lot more sophisticated in the cyber crime world. Ransomware continues to be a significant threat – it’s now not just about paying a sum of money to buy back access to your data, but criminals are often ‘auctioning off’ your data to the highest bidder.”

And even though it is the legal sector that is most at risk, it’s important for all companies to understand how cyber threats are becoming one of the biggest risks for businesses.

“The same principles apply no matter what your sector – having a robust cyber security policy and technical measures enforced are vital to mitigate against an attack.

“One of the things I spoke about at the EALG meeting was who is the decision maker in a company when it comes to cyber security and risks? From our experience at Lifeline IT, this is usually one of the most senior people within the business and often they are non-technical. Senior people who make these decisions need to have greater understanding of cyber security, as it is not just an IT issue, but something that affects every aspect of the company. Taking cyber security seriously has never been more important in today’s digital landscape.”