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IT Services & Support for Law Firms
Managed IT Services for the legal community has changed dramatically over the past few years.
An influx of new technology, a distributed workforce with mobile devices and increasing cybersecurity concerns have changed the game. It’s no longer enough for your Managed Service Provider (MSP) to provide break-fix services!
Cybersecurity and data protection are the top concerns for law firms. The soaring prevalence of attacks requires not only putting strategic cybersecurity plans in place, but complying with state, ABA and local bar association regulations.
Compounding the security challenge is the growth of agile working. The benefits of the cloud combined with mobile devices offer tremendous benefits, but can also increase your security risk if not implemented and managed properly.
There is also a dizzying array of new technology for law firms. Well thought out, strategic technology plans need to be put in place to ensure your firm is operating at the highest possible level, but with the utmost security.
Here are 5 areas that are important components for successful law firms that your MSP should assist you with:
- Advanced Cybersecurity Protection
- Compliance with Regulatory Requirements
- Cloud-based Solutions for Agile/Remote Working
- Client-focused Technology that Improves Efficiency
- Strategic IT Planning for Competitive Differentiation
TOP THREE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR LEGAL IT SERVICES
Protecting Your Confidential Data
Law firms are entrusted with highly sensitive information about their clients. This means the need for effective data security is of critical importance. If big name brands that devote millions of dollars to data protection are being hacked, you can be sure that small to medium law firms are at risk. You practice law. This means you're likely not suitable to make decisions on how to protect your data. For most law firms, even those with internal IT teams, it makes sense to investigate outsourcing 24x7, proactive cybersecurity protection from cyber experts.
Ensuring Billable Hours
We know that billable hours are key to a successful law firm. This means that any inefficiencies are unacceptable. New technology can help you maximize your billable hours, when implemented correctly. Advances in security, mobility, collaboration and efficiency are readily available, often via cloud-based solutions. Ask your IT consultant to help you wade through which options are best for your firm, including data backup and business continuity planning. Downtime is jaw-droppingly expensive for a law firm, and something you want to avoid!
Meeting Regulatory Requirements
Law firms do not have a specific security standard that they must comply with, such as FISMA, PCI DSS, HIPAA, NIST or SOX. However, if you handle credit cards you must comply with PCI DSS. Do you handle clients that are subject to HIPAA? Are you aware of the privacy laws in your state? Meeting your legal and ethical requirements can be a bit of a quagmire. The bottom line is that the American Bar Association recommends the use of third-party security assessments to ensure you are doing due diligence when it comes to protecting highly sensitive information.
CASE STUDY: LEGAL FIRM MOVES TO THE SECURE CLOUD
LEARN HOW WE HELPED THIS LEGAL SERVICES FIRM MOVE TO THE SECURE CLOUD
A business advisory firm which provides a wide range of legal services was expanding quickly.
While good for business, this growth was overwhelming the small internal IT team. The senior management team were worried that their IT environment was not up to date, and that they were no longer meeting industry security regulations.
Acting in an IT consultancy capacity, Ntiva came up with specific recommendations that needed to be implemented immediately.
This included migrating to Office 365 and moving to a new cloud-based document management and retrieval solution, in order to comply with strict archival compliance standards.
Ntiva remains in place to help augment their existing IT staff, helping them work on more strategic initiatives.