Law Firms And The Cloud: Is Your Data As Safe As You Think? - Above the Law

"The legal industry has been in full embrace mode when it comes to cloud computing. Data from the American Bar Association and reported in 2023 for example showed cloud usage among lawyers jumped from 60% to 70% overall, with solo practitioners leading the charge, going from 52% to 84% adoption in just one year. The legal tech press has been enthusiastically covering this "digital transformation," with publications like Legal Futures touting how "cloud-first strategy" is proving particularly popular among law firms."

"The narrative has been almost universally positive. Cloud computing offers flexibility, cost savings, remote access - what's not to love? The ABA's 2023 Cloud Computing TechReport reads like a love letter, noting that cloud computing eliminates the need for substantial upfront capital investment in "hardware, software and support services" and provides "robust data backup" if there is a disaster. It's become almost axiomatic in legal tech circles that the cloud is better than on-premises solutions."

"The assumption seems to be that by moving to the cloud, firms are automatically more secure, more efficient, and more disaster-proof. But while the move to the cloud from on-prem for law firms is considered a no-brainer, law firms may mistakenly believe that it's foolproof, that someone else is taking on the total responsibility to watching after and secure your data. And you need do nothing more. They miss the fact that according to cloud vendors, security is a shared responsibility."

Cloud usage among lawyers rose from 60% to 70% overall, with solo practitioners increasing from 52% to 84% adoption in one year. The cloud offers flexibility, cost savings, remote access, elimination of substantial upfront capital investment in hardware, software and support services, and provides robust data backup for disasters. Legal tech circles increasingly treat cloud-first strategies as preferable to on-premises solutions. Many firms assume cloud migration makes them automatically more secure, efficient, and disaster-proof, and may believe others fully manage data protection. Cloud vendors state that security is a shared responsibility, leaving firms responsible for aspects of resilience and data protection.

Read at Above the Law