OVERLAND PARK, KS–(Marketwired – May 22, 2015) – After years of helping corporate clients satisfy evolving regulations, law firms are now increasingly on the receiving end of audits. The number of compliance checklists for law firm technology systems and security procedures has ballooned in recent years. Whether dictated by the client itself or by laws and standards that now cover third parties, law firms are having their IT infrastructure, data security, and email policies intensely scrutinized.
In this environment, it’s critical for law firms to demonstrate to potential and existing clients that they can protect client data. One method to help firms accomplish this is to employ the combination of ISO certification and GRC technology.
ISO 27001
Many law firms are obtaining ISO certification to demonstrate that they’re taking steps towards being more secure and protecting their documents and communications systems. ISO 27001 was developed to “provide a model for establishing, implementing, operating, monitoring, reviewing, maintaining and improving an information security management system.”
Becoming ISO certified is a great first step for law firms to provide the assurance that their client’s information will be safe. According to The American Lawyer, “For the certification process, auditors need to see how staff are trained, what policies are in place, how information is classified, what documents and data are available to whom, how well the firm understands the government regulations they are subject to and whether they are in compliance with them.” All of these are important to maintaining control over even your own firm security practices.
Many clients will be happy to know their law firms are taking the right steps to data security with ISO certification. However, sometimes this isn’t enough to satisfy clients, especially if it’s a larger organization with more confidential information.
Even with ISO certification, a firm’s clients may conduct their own audits to ensure their requirements are being met. Client audits can be chaotic, messy, resource intensive and time consuming. Firms will also likely have clients representing multiple industries, each with its own set of rules and regulations. This creates an extremely high demand on firm resources. There is a way law firms can automate these grueling tasks and audit processes.
GRC
With the increased pressure for law firms to prove compliance with multiple rules and regulations, many of them are moving to Governance, Risk, and Compliance (GRC) solutions. With a GRC tool a law firm can prove and document compliance to multiple regulations, including ISO 27001, automatically with the click of a button. It can allow a law firm to maintain audit readiness by having a defined audit universe in place.
Tackling the audit process with a GRC approach results in:
- Greater overall awareness of network and data security issues
- Decreased number of regulatory controls required to be compliant
- Reduced audit preparation time
- Fewer remediation requests
A GRC tool, like LockPath’s Keylight, allows law firms to eliminate manual processes like spreadsheets and shared documents used to manage policies, compliance and risk management. Law firms earn their revenue by helping clients with important legal matters. Extra time spent complying with client guidelines and regulatory standards can take away time and resources from that goal.
The combination of ISO certification and a GRC solution can lead to greater client retention and a competitive advantage in the recruitment of corporate clients.
About LockPath
LockPath is a market leader in corporate governance, risk management, regulatory compliance (GRC) and information security (InfoSec) software. The company’s flexible, scalable and fully integrated suite of applications is used by organizations to automate business processes, reduce enterprise risk and demonstrate regulatory compliance to achieve audit-ready status. LockPath serves a client base of global organizations ranging from small and midsize companies to Fortune 10 enterprises in more than 15 industries. The company is headquartered in Overland Park, Kansas.
Image Available: http://www.marketwire.com/library/MwGo/2015/5/14/11G041749/Images/The_Six_Letter_Remedy-1216315350138.jpg
Support InfoStride News' Credible Journalism: Only credible journalism can guarantee a fair, accountable and transparent society, including democracy and government. It involves a lot of efforts and money. We need your support. Click here to Donate