DPS help law firms fight cyber-attacks


Emma-Francesca ISO

Emma Spenwyn and Francesca Bongiorno from DPS receiving the ISO 27001:2013 certificate of accreditation

Protecting the integrity and confidentiality of information is of paramount importance to solicitors. With security breaches on the increase, law firms must ensure that their data doesn’t fall into the wrong hands.

Cyber-crime is widespread and subtle. In 2012, two thirds of the firms that were a victim of cyber-attacks took more than three months to discover the breach. However subtle, attacks can be prevented by taking straightforward steps in the right direction.

DPS are proud to be the only legal technology provider to be ISO 27001:2013 certified at a company level.  The ISO 27001 certification applies to the company’s hosted IT solution dpscloud, proving that this provides its users with the necessary levels of control including data encryption, advanced virus protection, patch management and access control. More than 140 legal businesses have opted for this solution.

Attacks are predominantly software-related. Being one of the longest standing legal software providers on the market as well as a hosting provider, DPS have the necessary expertise to cover any existing gaps between the hardware and the software. In this way, DPS safeguards a firms’ data from increasingly sophisticated cyber-attacks.

Osman Ismail, the managing director of DPS said: ‘’There is an urgent need to protect information. The statistics tell a worrying story – 74% of small businesses and 90% of large organisations suffered a security breach last year. According to a recent report by Trustwave, it is very possible that many firms have been a target without ever being aware of this.

“This shows that cyber security is no longer an issue for governments and financial institutions alone. Everyone is a potential victim and we want to ensure that our clients are safe from the huge online crime wave. Achieving certification to ISO 27001 is proof that our company is at the forefront of information security within the legal sector.’’

DPS maintains its own data centre, thus helping its clients to comply with the definitive data location requirements of the Solicitors Regulation Authority. dpscloud’s stringent data protection rules and procedures allow law firms that want to apply for Cyber Insurance to meet the scrupulous criteria of their insurers and also to obtain a lower premium.

ISO 27001 is an internationally recognised best practice framework for an information security system. In order to be awarded this accreditation, DPS undertook a three day audit by the BSI (British Standards Institution) who evaluated its information security policies and procedures implemented for both the software and the hosting arms of the business. DPS was previously certified to the ISO 27001: 2005 standard.

DPS also provide one-day audits to law firms who want to undertake a risk assessment themselves to ensure that they are taking all the necessary precautionary measures to prevent online data theft. More information is available here.

Associate News is provided by Legal Futures Associates.
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