P2P

21 I L T A N E T . O R G I t's well documented that the International Legal Technology Association and Conversant Group recently released the first cybersecurity benchmarking survey of the legal industry. But for those who missed it, here's the press release. There's been a bevy of other press releases on the survey. So, for this blog entry, to try to freshen up a very technical and sometimes tedious topic – cyber security in legal – I thought I'd enlist the help of a bit of pop culture to highlight some of the top themes of the survey in a familiar manner. For many years on his award winning late night television show, David Lettermen offered a humorous segment – his Top Ten List – presenting comments circulating on a common theme. Admittedly, there's very little which is humorous about the security area, be assured that jocularity nor entertainment are not top of mind on this list. But it perhaps is an interesting format to highlight some key elements of the survey in a unique manner. With that, off we go! R E A S O N # 1 0 You Will Learn I don't care if you are the most brilliant engineer in the world, a law firm CIO or a Chambers or Martindale- Hubbell Peer Review quality lawyer, this survey is sure to impress. It is chock full of high-quality content across many dimensions, both technical and business oriented. There is truly something for everyone interested in security in the legal profession. R E A S O N # 9 Industry Perception If you did not buy in on Reason Number 10, don't worry, you're not alone. 75% of the survey respondents believe their law firm is more secure than their peer firms (which is a statistical anomaly of course). Seeing what others are doing across the many fronts of the security realm almost certainly will spark some useful ideas for one's law firm security program. R E A S O N # 8 Review Your MFA Program A large percentage of respondents indicated they use multi- factor authentication. But there are many aspects to MFA – network authentication, SaaS applications, personal device requirements, admin access, etc. So seeing what others are (and are not) doing is probably an eye opener, particularly if one's law firm MFA program may have missed an area or two others have included. R E A S O N # 7 Size Matters There are stark differences in programs in place by different types and sizes of law firms. One might be pleasantly surprised at what is in place in their peer law firms, or perhaps identify areas of opportunity. Comparing your firm's program to what's in place for peer firms – and understanding successful best practices and approaches for firms with different size I.T. teams – is a valuable element of the survey. R E A S O N # 6 Employee Training / Human Trends It's hard to argue that one can have "too much employee training" in the security space. That was one of many compelling topics covered in the CIO/CISO roundtable and the recent ILTA LegalSEC conference. But it's also true that humans are fallible. Survey points identifying how balancing training and building out multi-layered core technology-based defensive programs are one of the more interesting takeaways from the material. 21 I L T A N E T . O R G

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