A secure world beyond email

Accesspoint’s commercial director Gary Shaw explains the role that client portals and platforms can play in minimising cyber risk for law firms.

In an increasingly digital world, there are more cyber attacks around the corner than ever before – and firms may not be as prepared as they think. With the fundamental shift of remote working taking place in the legal industry right now, what can your firm do to mitigate risk and maintain operational resilience?

Assessing how you can securely and efficiently send confidential data from person to person is essential to protecting your firm. Email correspondence is certainly on the rise as remote working increases, and it is quickly becoming one of the biggest opportunities given to hackers who are constantly on the lookout for even the slightest opening.

With busy schedules and mounting workloads from one day to the next, being vigilant with every email that goes in and out can be hard to do. When you pair that with the fact that phishing scams are becoming more sophisticated every day, the idea of a security attack isn’t too far-fetched.

Furthermore, reports over recent years have shown increases in phishing emails by up to 250%, and 56% of senior IT technicians think that their employees have picked up ‘bad cybersecurity habits’ due to less surveillance and a high level of correspondence. The increase of various applications coming to market with the lack of interconnectivity could mean hackers have a better chance to exploit a firms’ current defence. As the holiday period approaches, security threats are likely to increase, especially as more firms are now using remote working methods. Even with security training and testing in place, human error can still occur, and slip ups can still be made. Peace of mind is certainly valuable at this time.

Perhaps now is the time to begin looking into innovative ideas that can help to completely remove the need for email correspondence altogether. What we’re talking about are legal platforms.

It’s no secret that email will become a thing of the past and legal platforms are on track to take its place. Just imagine how a fully integrated, secure, cloud-based legal platform could help boost your firm to the next level. Your firm will experience unmatched security by replacing the need for emails with a secure hub designed for client and solicitor communication, thereby instantly neutralising the possibility of an attack.

One thing to remember when exploring an investment like this: your team is only as strong as the weakest link, which is why ensuring every colleague is aware and fully trained on their new platform is vital. Get everyone on board with the new system as soon as possible and avoid voiding your investment.

Explore the many benefits that Legal platforms will offer your firm and be one of the first to step into the future. Look for legal IT specialists to help get your firm started – doing it right will help your firm nurture strong agile working cultures that will increase productivity, security and enhance the value they deliver to their clients.