During the past quarter, I’ve had the privilege of hosting a series of ILTA roadshows focused on security issues around file transfers. The roadshows – held in Boston, New York and DC – typically welcome around 20 IT professionals each from multiple law firms. The intimate size helps us all to have frank discussions about what keeps IT up at night.

On the forefront: Breaching client confidentiality and regulations.

Beyond the obvious dread of jeopardizing a law firm’s reputation and opening it up for massive fines, there’s a personal take as well. IT leaders are realizing that they are responsible for technology safeguards that protect client data and comply with federal and state data privacy regulations.


The Culprits: Email and FTP Sites

Two methods of potentially risky file transfer kept surfacing during our conversations: Email and FTP sites.

The attendees expressed concern that there seems to be little regard from attorneys and staff when  it comes to potential security breaches caused by using email and unsecured FTP sites  to transfer client documents and files.

It is almost like the proverbial Sword of Damocles is hanging over legal IT’s head. IT is only one wrong click or FTP error away from heavy fines and potential damage to law firms’ reputations.


Revenge of the Large Email Attachments

The 2010 ILTA member technology purchasing survey identified email management as the biggest issue facing legal IT for the third year running and the roadshow attendees verified that the ever-increasing size of email attachments is a growing support issue.

Is this scenario familiar?

An attorney tries to attach a 50 MB+ PDF to an email addressed to a client.  If the email is lucky enough to traverse the firm’s exchange gateway, there is a good chance it will get bounced back due to recipient email size limitations.  The attorney then receives an undeliverable message (sometimes not until the next day) and contacts IT for help.  Cue the IT support drama!

Would you believe that one of the most popular remedies is to break up a large file into multiple smaller files and then send multiple email messages?  This is a quick fix, yes, but doesn’t speak to a law firm’s technical prowess.


And Don’t Even Start us on FTPs

Another common option is for IT to erect an FTP site. After a communal groan, the attendees agreed FTP sites are often difficult to use, challenging to secure and an overall pain in the neck.


What do you think?

Does your law firm face challenges when transferring large files?  What do you think are the leading security issues around this?

Leave a comment below so we can continue the conversation.


Coming to a City Near You

ILTA is planning more roadshows for Biscom so hopefully I’ll be in your neck of the woods soon.  Feel free to reach out to me at cmagliato at biscom.com if you have a specific city in mind you’d like to see us in. I will keep you posted.

This is a great story about BDS in a software as a service (SaaS) environment. BankLiberty was looking for a faster, more secure, and more efficient way to send their confidential information out. KDSA Consulting, our partner in North Andover, MA, hosts our secure file transfer solution in their datacenter, handling the back end so our customers don't have to worry about hardware, software, and network connectivity.

My favorite quote in the article, by network administrator Dan Hagstrom, was when he said that "the results in 2010 have been transformative. It's changed the way that we can communicate with the outside world."

Register for a luncheon that Biscom and Keno Kozie will be hosting in Chicago on August 4th. This luncheon will be a way for legal IT professionals to discuss file transfer technologies, how to lock down files during transport, collaborating with clients and external counsel, and replacing FTP servers with a more manageable and secure solution.

 

Biscom and Adapative Solutions have just announced the world's first SFT integration with Autonomy iManage for document management. By integrating BDS with iManage, users can send files in their FileSite repository through BDS directly without having to copy files to their desktop and then send. When receiving files securely through BDS, iManage users can also save files directly to FileSite.

For more information on deploying BDS with your iManage solution, contact Adaptive Solutions. See the full press release here.

Biscom has partnered with TOSS to provide a hosted solution for transfering files. For smaller companies who have confidential, sensitive, or very large files to transfer, the GetSaaS Secure Files solution by TOSS is a great way to deploy secure file transfer services to your users quickly and easily. The best part about this, you're using the same trusted and proven software solution that Fortune 500 companies rely on to transfer their most critical files and data.

We're excited to partner with a company like TOSS who has years of experience in managed services. Read the full press release here.

New press release on our partnership with Keno Kozie, a leading provider of information technology design, service, and support to law firms and legal departments.

See the full press release here.