Security of Email for Solicitors
September 24, 2006
Security of Email for Solicitors Gone is the telephone. Gone is one to one in person conversation. Email is THE form of communication, more so in the everyday business world. So to, is it now part of the legal firm; for communication between colleagues as well as to some extent communication to clients.
Due to the nature of the information being sent, in these emails it is necessary for the data to be secured/encrypted/protected from others accessing these messages and coming into contact with confidential information.
In terms of intra-communication, most large firms have been relatively security conscious. However, some don’t realise the ease of accessing information from unsecured wireless networks. The confidentiality of clients via email messages need to be improved, especially in small firms. It is every person’s right to have their own private life remain private, and when it comes to legally sensitive matters, even more so. In this age of cyber culture, where almost anything is accessible, both large and small firms need to find methods of keeping the net a secure environment for both them as solicitors and the clients.
Entry Filed under: Uncategorized. .
2 Comments Add your own
Leave a Comment
Some HTML allowed:
<a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <pre> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>
Trackback this post | Subscribe to the comments via RSS Feed
1.
lannsoon | October 7, 2006 at 5:04 am
What of instant messaging type communications? When I sit down in the majority of my classes at home (unlike UNSW where the powers that be seem to feel that chairs and desks that look like trees are more important than wireless internet!), I can’t help but notice that everyone with a laptop (which is nearly everyone) has either MSN messenger or G-mail messenger open and ready to go. While this undoubtedly leads to some mindless chit chat, it is also an effective medium for discussion. As a generation of lawyers graduate from law school having used instant messaging networks, it is not a stretch to think that these lawyers will want to use this form of communication in their practice, but what of security of these systems? When I went to the IT geek at my former job to ask her if I could install MSN Messenger on my work computer (It really was for work purposes! Seriously.) she nearly shat her pants. Apparently having Messenger on a secure LAN is like waving a red flag to a cyber hacking bull. I guess that this means that Messenger, in its current form, isn’t a good idea to sensitive legal material. However, this doesn’t mean that ALL instant messaging networks need be insecure. Personally, I think that messaging is a great form of communication. Its quicker and more personal than e-mail, while less invasive than a phone call. I, for one, hope that messaging evolves and sticks around.
LJ
2. Instant Messaging in the Law Firm « LJ’s Computer Applications to Law Blog | October 7, 2006 at 5:07 am
[...] Below is a comment I made in repsonse to AShell’s post on e-mail security for solicitors. The original blog can be found at http://ashell.wordpress.com/2006/09/24/security-of-email-for-solicitors/#comment-9 [...]