Law firms are increasingly reliant on IT and technology to
deliver their services, and are falling victim to a range of malicious cyber
activities. In the last year, 60% of law firms reported an information security
incident – an increase of almost 20% from the previous 12 months – whilst the
Solicitors Regulation Authority reports that over £11m of client money was
stolen due to cyber crime in 2016-17.
The NCSC’s ‘The cyber threat to UK legal sector‘
report explains the current cyber security threats that are targeting the legal
sector, illustrated with high-profile case studies such as the Mossack Fonseca
data breach. The report also offers practical guidance to help firms put
relevant protections in place.
The report has been developed in partnership
with the NCSC Industry 100 scheme and the Law Society, and forms part of
the NCSC’s mission to raise the cyber maturity and resilience of UK law firms.
The report has been produced for senior decision makers in
the legal sector, with the aim of encouraging industry-wide adoption of
cyber security best practice. The NCSC is encouraging law firms of all
sizes to sign up to the NCSC’s free Cyber
Security Information Sharing Platform (CiSP), a joint industry and
government initiative set up to exchange cyber threat information in real time,
in a secure, confidential and dynamic environment. In addition, UK-based
law firms can now sign up to a new, private ‘Legal Sector’ group, tailored to
their specific needs.
