Law Technology Today From the ABA Legal Technology Resource Center
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Technology evolves rapidly, and unfortunately security threats evolve right along with it. To keep your firm’s technology–and your clients’ data–safe, it’s important to keep your software up-to-date and to stay informed about the latest security threats.
Thankfully, staying ahead of the security curve doesn’t require a computer science degree. It can be as simple as bookmarking a few useful blogs or news sites (or subscribing to their RSS feeds/email lists), and then checking them briefly as part of your morning reading routine.
Here are a few good sources for security news/information:
- Ars Technica: Digital Security Essentials
- Computerworld Security Topic Center
- ZDNet
- Slashdot Security
In particular, watch for news about emerging scams, data breaches that may have impacted you, or news about security vulnerabilities in the software or online services that you use for your practice.
Keeping your software up-to-date is the other half of the battle. Software developers are making this easier than ever by including built-in updaters that will automatically check for and install updates. Be sure that you have automatic updates turned on whenever the feature is available, and if it isn’t available for a piece of software you use regularly, bookmark the developer’s page and be sure to check it routinely for announced updates/vulnerabilities. Some developers, like Adobe, offer e-mail announcement lists that will notify you about security issues should they arise.
Using an older piece of software (or even an operating system) that’s no longer supported by the developer? Time to upgrade or look for an alternative product. Unsupported software usually means that security vulnerabilities go unfixed, inviting disaster for yourself, your firm, and your clients.
