Lawyers have been communicating with their clients through the clouds for years. Firm websites, e-mails, and blogs effortlessly and instantaneously connect lawyers to their clients via computers, smart phones and now, tablets. The Internet, propelled by ever-changing and evolving technology, offers borderless accessibility. The most recent manifestation of this phenomenon is "cloud computing." Also known as "software as a service" or SaaS, cloud computing is a form of remote electronic data storage on the Internet. Data stored "in the cloud" are maintained by vendors and stored on large servers that may be located anywhere in the world. Typically, the vendor purchases and maintains its hardware and software, and firms pay a monthly fee to the vendor for its services.
While this form of outsourcing is touted as fostering firm efficiency and cost-saving, the elusiveness of this new type of data storage has raised eyebrows in the legal community as to its ethical propriety. In particular, potential concerns regarding confidentiality, security, and control surround cloud computing.
Spearheading an effort to identify specific practical concerns surrounding cloud computing and ways to develop necessary guidelines, the American Bar Association (ABA) Commission on Ethics 20/20 Working Group on the Implications of New Technologies, published an Issues Paper Concerning Client Confidentiality and Lawyers' Use of Technology on Sept. 20, 2010. The issues paper highlighted a number of concerns regarding a lawyer's use of cloud computing, including unauthorized access to confidential client information; storage of information on servers in countries with fewer legal protections; vendor failure to adequately back up data; unclear policies regarding data ownership; policies for notifying customers of security breaches; insufficient data encryption; the necessity for client consent; and policies for data destruction.
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Source: Legal Technology News
By: Devika Kewalramani
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