Category Archives: Technology

Core technology discussions

Tech Snippets Today – HackerEarth – Vishy Shukla – CTO; OccSaviors – Jeffrey Miller – Founder, with Joseph Raczynski

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Web3 is rapidly deploying globally. There are those that are building, and those that are harnessing the skills to build. One can birth the other.

In today’s discussion, I speak with Vishwastam (Vishy) Shukla, Chief Technology Officer at HackerEarth, which is a tech hiring platform that helps recruiters and engineering managers effortlessly hire the best developers thanks to a powerful suite of virtual recruiting tools that help identify, assess, interview and engage developers. They also put on a ton of hackathons. One huge winner from a recent HackerEarth hackathon, OccSaviors. They fight for Honest Occupational Health Hazard Standards. Founder and industrial hygienist Jeffrey Miller details how the decentralized project looks to give occupational workers the fuel they need to track their exposure levels by using NFTs.

It’s great to see how education in technology, especially in Web3, can create amazing new companies.

Podcast: The Hearing – Chris Mohr – VP for Intellectual Property and GC at SIIA

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This week we talk privacy, piracy, and intellectual property. Before the lockdown, I sat down with Chris Mohr, VP for Intellectual Property and GC at Software and Information Industry Association.

Working at the heart of the US federal government in Washington DC, Chris tells us about life as a lobbyist on Capitol Hill and how he navigates the challenges posed by different global approaches to intellectual property. He also talks about the intersection between IP and privacy law and the Constitution, as most data is effectively speech for Constitutional purposes, there are fundamental conflicts when people’s privacy rights are at stake.

Chris and I chat about where AI might be taking us and what IP implications there may be, as they ponder whether machines are legally allowed to be inventors.

Listen on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/ep-56-chris-mohr-software-information-industry-association/id1389813956?i=1000484584104

Listen on Google: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9wb3J0YWwtYXBpLnRoaXNpc2Rpc3RvcnRlZC5jb20veG1sL3RoZS1oZWFyaW5n/episode/aHR0cDovL2F1ZGlvLnRoaXNpc2Rpc3RvcnRlZC5jb20vcmVwb3NpdG9yeS9hdWRpby9lcGlzb2Rlcy9FcDU2X0NocmlzX01vaHJfbWl4ZG93bi0xNTk0Mzg4MTc0NjkzNTY5MTkzLU16QTNNamd0TlRBd01UQTFOVFE9Lm1wMw?ved=0CAIQkfYCahcKEwjQgPy9qsrqAhUAAAAAHQAAAAAQBA

Increasingly Cloudy — Law Firms Continue the Flight into the Storage Heavens and What the Future Holds

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Originally published on the Legal Executive Institute

By Joseph Raczynski

With the recently released ILTA Technology Survey there is little question that Cloud adoption is drifting upward at law firms. I have also seen this trend through recent conversations with law firm CIOs and CTOs. The shift is real. ILTA’s survey qualified this change to outsourced storage, rising to 62% in 2016, from 51% in 2015. This is a solid leap forward year over year.

cloud

ILTA Annual Legal Technology Survey 2016

While the majority of responding law firms lean in favor of Cloud technology, a certain subset of firms will stay the course and continue to opt-out. The primary reason given for avoiding the Cloud is client demand. That said, I have seen some cracks developing in the tough exterior of this conservative approach.

Given recent data breaches at law firms, I more frequently hear that clients tend to feel increasingly comfortable with a secured and vetted provider than allowing their law firms to continue hosting the data themselves. Security is the overarching reason. If a firm chooses a reliable Cloud provider, the likelihood of that provider having real-time monitoring, enhanced security application layers, and the most up-to-date services — especially compared to a typical law firm — is much more likely. In short, most firms would be better suited to use a top Cloud service rather than subjecting themselves to a multitude of cybersecurity issues by manning the wall alone.

Indeed, the resources and skills needed for the level of protection clients are demanding — demands that are growing more complicated daily — is normally beyond most law firms’ resources with regard to personnel and technology. The old adage is fitting in this case: “Do what you do best.” And maintaining storage may no longer fall into this space for the typical law firm.

Infinite Storage and What Comes Next

The largest Cloud providers are preparing for a meaningful change in this space over the next 10 years of growth. Clearly, storage is becoming very inexpensive as hardware prices drop. This leads us to what I have previously discussed — a time of Infinite Memory. When this happens (and we are very close now), the next significant change will be to the services model in this space. Five of the largest Cloud providers — Google, Amazon, Microsoft, SalesForce and IBM — are all preparing for it.

Artificial Intelligence as a Service (AIaaS)

More importantly, no longer will the Cloud be solely about storage. Instead, it will be more about the services — this has existed with SaaS- (Software as a Service)-based solutions for a while, but this is going to change even more in the next several years. The philosophy is that these large Cloud providers will probably start giving storage away for free. The next phase is leveraging some of the more emerging technologies in the Cloud, with Artificial Intelligence as a Service (AIaaS) being the next great jump forward.

The simple idea is that these providers will start charging for add-on services that nearly every organization will have to have in order to compete. If you do not have the latest AI, you may be out of the game quickly. These new services will compel those firms and companies still sitting on the sidelines into the game.

A bit further out, I see Cloud providers also getting into the Blockchain space. Essentially Blockchain is a decentralized database which stores encrypted information. It makes that data easily available to those who are allowed access to it. All of this information runs on services, and the Cloud will be able to handle this with aplomb.

Without a doubt, law firms’ reliance on the Cloud is growing quickly, and it is only a matter of time before it becomes more ubiquitous and accepted than our current state of 63% adoption.

How prepared are law firms to face cyber security threats?

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By Joseph Raczynski

The hacking of Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca last April resulted in 11.5 million leaked attorney-client privileged documents, exposing the widespread use of off-shore businesses by wealthy individuals and corporations around the world and highlighting the imperative need for proactive measures against corruption and other illicit financial activity.

But what it also revealed was just how vulnerable law firms can be to hackers and other cyber criminals.

Daniel GarrieDaniel Garrie is an arbitrator, forensic neutral and technical special master at JAMS, available in Los Angeles, New York and Seattle. He is executive managing partner of Law & Forensics LLC and head of the computer forensics and cybersecurity practice groups, with locations in the United States, India and Brazil. He is also a Partner at Zeichner Ellman & Krause LLP, where he heads their global cyber security practice, and an adjunct professor at Cardozo School of Law.

I recently spoke to Daniel Garrie, Global Head of eDiscovery, Forensics, and Cybersecurity Practices for Law & Forensics LLC, to get his insight into some of the cyber security issues facing law firms today:

Q. Daniel, why do hackers and other cyber criminals target law firms?

First, for information. All kinds of potentially valuable information: M&A information, IP information, real estate information, divorce information; information that can make people money or give them leverage. If you think about the law firms that just do mortgages, for example; getting a fully detailed mortgage package with social security numbers, bank account numbers, wiring information — that’s a pretty interesting piece of information.

Second, because in many cases, the law firm is the weakest link. Take the case of an M&A deal, for example. Why invest money and resources to hack the companies — which are more likely to have robust cyber security frameworks — when you can just hack the law firm, where cyber security resources are fewer and far more fragile?

Q. So law firms are not prepared to deal with these threats?

No, but not because they don’t want to be, but because of how law firms work as a partner profit-sharing entity. There has to be a reason to invest in measures to prevent them.

Q. And what are those reasons?

The consequences of unprotected and disclosed client data are two-fold. Not only do a law firm’s clients face potential reputational, financial, and legal risks when their private information is accessed and potentially distributed, the firm itself faces those same risks.

All law firms are competing for business and firms that don’t protect against cyber security threats run the risk of losing a substantial amount of business. Law firms are becoming acutely more aware of the fact that if they’re hacked, chances are, they’re no longer going to be a law firm.

Q. So what steps can law firms take to get prepared to deal with these threats?

First, focus on cyber hygiene. Do whatever it takes to put the right preventative measures in place in place:encryption, “least access necessary” policies, training and education for staff, etc. Second, find trusted partners.Do business only with those whom you can trust because if they are labeled as “hacked,” it could devastate your business, too.

Original post in AnswersOn

Thomson Reuters Innovation Lab at Communitech – Kitchener, Canada

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By Joseph Raczynski

Visit to the Communitech Innovation Lab near Waterloo Canada to see the Thomson Reuters Innovation Lab. In addition, a group of customers and TR employees went through a Design Thinking Workshop. Other companies at the location include; Google, GM, TD Bank, Canon, Deloitte, Fairfax Financial, Manulife.  Special thanks to Brian Zubert for all of his hospitality and education during the day.

ILTACON 2016: Re-Imagining Legal Technology for the 21st Century

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By Joseph Raczynski

“The story of disruption was just the first act of 21st century business, now begins the tale of total transformation.”

— Mike Walsh

NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. — So reverberated the words of Mike Walsh a Futurist/CEO of Tomorrow, across an audience of more than 3,000 legal professionals at ILTACON 2016, a four-day conference that centers on the intersection of technology and the legal industry.

Walsh gave the keynote on the opening day of the annual conference, and the lens he cast enlightened the onlookers to a futuristic view of our current world. He then bridged that technological vision to the 21st Century Legal realm and focused on several thought provoking questions.

Can you think like an 8-year-old?

The key to transformation is to be ahead of it. Through the optics of an eight-year-old we can view the direction that technology is shifting. They embrace mobile — why? Because parents have pacified their kids for years with iPads and mobile phones. Their learnings began on those platforms which became almost intuitive to them and will now dictate our future.

When will we be a truly data-driven world?

Now! The biggest social shifts are shaped by the data-driven world. Disney World offers the most advanced of data collection and use. Their MagicBands are linked to a credit card and function as a park entry pass as well as a room key. They know who you are, where you are, and increasingly know what you want — predictively. Food can be delivered to you without you ever specifying a location. All of this is using data and machine learning to better understand consumer, and thus human behavior.

disney

WeChat, an app primarily used in China, was also offered as a good example of where we are going. With this app, people in China can play games, pay for things and buy insurance — the whole time interacting with a bot that is constantly gathering data and learning. This is what we will begin to see in all businesses in the near future.

In preparation for his transition into a discussion around legal, Walsh offered another thought. The children of today will be the first generation to be raised partly by artificial intelligence (AI). If you think about the platforms that are prevalent now, kids are interacting with them increasingly — Alexa, Google and Siri. Law firms have to start thinking about how these eventual employees will work and interact with each other both inside and outside of the firm.

How will a 21st century law firm differ from a 20th century firm?

The world is now global. The largest corporations and law firms have back office and operations support overseas. As an example, Walsh talked about something he saw in India which illustrated where we are headed. An AI machine (physical computer) is situated alongside other staff in a cubical at an office center in India. It is fully embraced and accepted as a highly efficient employee — and continues to improve rapidly with its own productivity.

Speaking of actual human employees, recruiting people will transform, Walsh noted. The next generation of hiring future lawyers, and collaborating with clients should focus on rethinking how we hire. Offer a prospect a clean sheet of paper and ask them to come up with a solution to a problem. Another idea, after a month on the job, ask what processes the newbie might change based on what they are seeing.

int-about-mike

What kind of mental software are you new hires running?

Going forward, the operating system of a 21st century lawyer is as much about the culture as it is about the code. All firms will have to be agile, and firms will have to hire people that think that way. Everything around our traditional culture and space is changing. People will increasingly be working from other locations, so this concept has to be reimagined. Walsh’s suggestion was to think about the person you are hiring — are they energized by solving problems? Additionally, environments have to be reconsidered. How do you design an office for people that do not need one?

Lastly, are you leveraging all of your data?

Law firms are rife with all sorts of data. One question that Walsh suggested was worth posing is how are firms using that data? Increased productivity can be gained by applying analytics to the whole.

In closing, Walsh pleaded for the legal space to adjust their mindsets, how we see and use data, which people are hired, and what technological processes are in place. We need to think like an eight-year-old to see how the world will change and adapt now, he explained.

The data inside law firms has to be better leveraged and analyzed with new tools. When hiring, do so by unearthing agile people and creating more social workspaces. One of the best ways to do that is by rethinking your communities, picking some high-profile projects and challenging those new teams to experiment.

In conclusion, Walsh noted: “When preparing for this new future, embrace that the future means challenging everything we know to be true.”

Theta 360 Degree Camera

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By Joseph Raczynski

Back from a trip, here are some examples of what the 360 Degree Camera can do with photos.  I do believe these gadgets will be popular in the coming year, especially as they work well with the virtual reality viewing gear.

Theta 360º Camera

Images

The Paralegal’s Role in the New World of Cybersecurity

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Published: The Legal Intelligencer

Written: Victor Panieczko

Contributor: Joseph Raczynski

Cyberattacks have affected virtually every industry. These include, but are not limited to, health care, education, finance, energy, retail, hospitality and government. Most of us have seen or heard about the security breaches of Home Depot Inc., eBay Inc., Target Corp., Sony Pictures Entertainment, JPMorgan Chase, and the U.S. Office of Personnel Management. What is cybersecurity? The National Initiative for Cybersecurity Career and Studies (NICCS) defines cybersecurity as “the activity or process, ability or capability, or state whereby information and communications systems and the information contained therein are protected from and/or defended against damage, unauthorized use or modification, or exploitation.” Oxforddictionaries.com states that cybersecurity is “the state of being protected against the criminal or unauthorized use of electronic data, or the measures taken to achieve this.” Finally, Webopedia.com characterizes cybersecurity as “the technologies and processes designed to protect computers, networks and data from unauthorized access, vulnerabilities and attacks.”

Cybersecurity is by all accounts a growing challenge. Today, hackers are more advanced and better equipped. Their success mostly depends on finding a hole, or vulnerability, that goes unpatched or unnoticed by defenders. The more difficult a system is to infiltrate, the more time, energy and skill hackers must invest into cracking that system. More attacks are coming from highly skilled and sophisticated hacker groups, with their motivations varying from monetary gain to disruption and injury to their targets for any number of non-monetary reasons.

Virtually every cybersecurity expert and commentator agrees that the threats to cybersecurity are evolving and growing more worrisome. Risks associated with cybersecurity have escalated for many law firms, managing partners and corporate boards of directors. They are working and prioritizing cybersecurity to establish security awareness throughout the organizations and demonstrating cybersecurity as an enterprise priority. Lawyers and law firms handle highly sensitive and confidential client data and play a critical role in assisting general counsel on how to handle a cyberbreach when information is compromised. Edward J. McAndrew, assistant U.S. attorney and cybercrime coordinator, explains what have been the most significant developments in the area of law firm cybersecurity:

“Because of the information entrusted to them, the sensitive matters they handle, and the prominent positions in society they often occupy, lawyers are primary targets for all types of cyberattacks. … Cybersecurity has become both an ethical obligation and business imperative for law firms of all sizes. The Model Rules of Professional Conduct and the ethical rules of a growing number of state bars expressly encompass obligations to secure, and to maintain the confidentiality of, client data. Clients are under increasing pressure to secure their own and their customers’ data. They are applying that pressure on law firms.”

Many law firms have offices around the globe, and their clients’ operations are constantly expanding. Clients conducting business in industries such as health care, banking and financial services, retail and telecommunications are at a high risk for cybersecurity breaches. Clients are raising their cybersecurity concerns with their lawyers and looking for advice from law firms on how to protect against a breach and design a security plan in case a breach does occur. When asked if paralegals will be involved in their law firms’ processes of creating and developing cyberrisk management protocols, Joseph Raczynski, technology manager from Thomson Reuters, explained that “it makes natural sense that paralegals who have an interest in process and cybersecurity take a significant role in managing these protocols. Paralegals touch so many aspects of the firm. They use various applications, websites, manage large volumes of data and email. All of these facets can be an entryway for viruses, malware and hackers. Paralegals who have a natural inclination toward process and an interest in cybersecurity would be a great fit in this realm to help fill the void at the firm.”

On a large scale, law firms handle and store a large volume of their clients’ confidential information in their networks. Law firms are vulnerable targets for hackers because they represent clients in high-risk industries. The more high-volume and sophisticated clients they have, the better information they possess, and the more value it holds for hackers. Lawyers are holders of clients’ personal and legal information and have an ethical duty to protect client data. The American Bar Association Model Rules of Professional Conduct, in Rule 1.6(c), state, “A lawyer shall make reasonable efforts to prevent the inadvertent or unauthorized disclosure of, or unauthorized access to, information relating to the representation of a client.” Corporate and individual clients entrust their lawyer and the law firms with their sensitive and confidential data. A client’s data might relate to intellectual property, employment or labor disputes, real estate, political matters, victim statements, and witness and expert identities and testimonies. Benjamin M. Lawsky, New York State Department of Financial Services superintendent, stated in a letter to CEOs, GCs and CIOs:

“Recent cybersecurity breaches should serve as a stern wake-up call for insurers and other financial institutions to strengthen their cyberdefenses. Those companies are entrusted with a virtual treasure trove of sensitive customer information that is an inviting target for hackers. Regulators and private-sector companies must both redouble their efforts and move aggressively to help safeguard this consumer data.”

Further, DFS “encourages all institutions to view cybersecurity as an integral aspect of their overall risk management strategy, rather than solely as a subset of information technology.”

Because law firms these days have highly mobile workforces, they should be aware of the emergence of cyberrisks in their respective firms. If the firms do not have proper protection in place to stop hackers from obtaining critical and confidential information related to client matters, the breaches will result in substantial loss of time, resources, productivity, revenue, and perhaps most importantly, credibility. To help law firms and businesses deal with cyberattacks and breaches, U.S. Congress has passed legislation regarding cybersecurity enforcement, the Cybersecurity Enhancement Act of 2014 (S 1353). Additional pending federal legislation includes the Protecting Cyber Networks Act (HR 1560); the National Cybersecurity Protection Advancement Act of 2015 (HR 1731) and the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act of 2015 (S 754).

Legal technology is constantly undergoing development and change. We went from microfilm and microfiche to CD-ROM, to Lexis and Westlaw, to email and the Internet, to technology-assisted review (TAR) and electronically stored information (ESI), to social medial and now to cybersecurity. These technological advances transformed the law firm workplace. Many litigation paralegals obtained skills in TAR and ESI. Should paralegals learn new skills related to cybersecurity? Raczynski explains what effect he foresees cybersecurity and other technological developments will have on paralegals:

“Paralegals are squarely in the mix with regard to cybersecurity activity for both the protection of client data, but also as targets for hackers. They carry a significant responsibility in assuring that the firm is not compromised. Through their everyday projects paralegals are on the frontlines of major security threats. They must be vigilant in awareness about the software they download and use, sites visited, and links clicked. As law firms become larger targets for hackers because of IP and proprietary information for mergers and acquisitions, there are a host of ways that they are being targeted.”

Further, McAndrew answers if he thinks paralegals will spend more time assisting and/or working on cybersecurity projects:

“Yes—in at least two respects. First, the need for cybersecurity-related legal services has exploded seemingly overnight. Many firms are building practices focused on the legal issues created by cybersecurity needs across industry sectors. Working on these issues requires a very high level of legal and technological expertise. More paralegals are likely to begin specializing in cyberlaw, just as more lawyers and firms are beginning to do so. Second, cybersecurity is becoming an important business issue for the law firms themselves. Inadequate cybersecurity is becoming a business disqualifier; good cybersecurity is a business differentiator. Those firms and professionals who can distinguish themselves as knowledgeable and appropriately focused on these issues add additional value to the service they can offer clients. As integral parts of the legal services team, paralegals are likely to spend additional time learning about and working on cybersecurity-related, business development projects.”

 

Brand New Theta S 360 Degree Camera (Spherical) Demo

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By Joseph Raczynski

Another new technology! This is a quick demo of how a spherical camera works. I am in an office giving the demo so you get an understanding for how to use it. Also I discuss possible use cases for this new technology.

You can do many things with this:

– Right now if you are watching this on YouTube on your Phone you can move the phone around to see anything that is happening around me.
– If you are watching this on your computer, you should be able to drag the screen in any direction or use the controller in the upper left hand section of the screen.

Pardon the lower quality, still working on the compression for the video. Enjoy!

Law Firm of the Future – The Trinity of Forces: Infinite Processing Power, Memory, and Machine Learning

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By Joseph Raczynski

In ten years, it is predicted that 40% of the Fortune 500 companies will no longer exist1. This forecast originally cited in Fast Company is from a Babson Olin School of Business study.  This notion is nearly incomprehensible, but may have a significant impact on the legal business.

Why is this happening now, and what impact might it have on the law firm?

We are at an extraordinary moment in time with the evolution of technology on three fronts.  The trinity of forces are colliding at once, propelling change with everything around us.

Gordon Moore, an Intel chip scientist, formulated a well renowned technical law.  Moore’s Law states that roughly every 18 to 24 months, the processing power of computers doubles. That is, the ability for a computer to perform calculations is increasing exponentially.  For some perspective, if you were to buy a $1,000 computer in the year 2000, it would have had the processing power of an insect brain. Buy a new computer in 2010 and you would have the processing power of a mouse brain.  Fast-forward to 2024 and the expectation is that a new computer will be as powerful as the human brain.  In 2045, a $1,000 computer purchased from Amazon.com will process as fast as all of humankind.  The implications of this are staggering.

In the second of the three forces, we couple what amounts to unlimited processing power with the advances to storage and memory for computers. In 1965, IBM built a computer with 5MB of storage.  It was as big as a bedroom and cost $120,000. In 2004, a memory chip the size of a fingernail cost $99 and held 128 MB.  Ten years later, we can purchase a 128 GB chip for $99.  This is the hockey stick picture of momentum with exponential growth accelerating rapidly up the graph for both processing power and memory.

The third and last piece of this triumvirate of significant change is programming and algorithms.  We are at a state where computers are beginning to teach themselves.  Machine learning is becoming an increasingly important part of many businesses.  Through an algorithm, a programmer builds a foundation from which the program can learn and continue to adapt and grow.  There are a plethora of examples that are starting to take hold.  IBM Watson has the most buzz right now with its cognitive computing platform.  Uber uses machine learning to price rides, location drop-offs and pickups. Amazon can couple complementary products with your purchase.  In the legal space, WestSearch®, the fundamental algorithm behind WestlawNext®, learns as people conduct research.  It surfaces up the most pertinent content and good law for the researcher.  Other legal examples include e-Discovery where many products utilize predictive analytics to help reduce the number of eyes necessary to review documents.

The blending of these three forces – processing power, memory, and algorithms – is a mixture for infinite growth and transformation at law firms.  The opportunities are immense.  Here are some possible changes afoot as the trifecta take hold over the next 10 years.

  • As predicted that 40% of the Fortune 500 companies will no longer exist because of these forces, law firms will likely mirror this as some who do not adapt and embrace these technologies will struggle to survive
  • In the next 10 years, because of unlimited storage and processing power, most document review will be completely automated and computerized.  No longer will the first years or contract attorneys be reviewing documents for 18 hours a day
  • Workflow solutions will reign over the next five years, but beyond that the trifecta of forces mentioned will push these solutions into complete automation so that drafting documents will be computer generated.  This is actually happening now with 20 percent of Web news articles written by computer
  • We are in an interstitial period with the Cloud.  Currently, security frightens many firms from taking advantage of its scale and low cost.  In the coming years, most firms will move everything they can to some type of Cloud, including private or hybrid
  • Everything will be outsourced at the firm.  Phone systems, HR systems, back office, administrative and technical support, where the portal will be hosted, office tools like Microsoft® Office, and all things technical will likely be moved away from the firm and managed by vendor experts.  This will greatly reduce costs for the firm as they tap into the three forces
  • As a result of the above, most attorneys will work remotely, and law firm office space will be dramatically smaller
  • Big firms will get bigger and the medium may get smaller.  The mediums who adapt will find their niche as a regional player, local generalist, boutique, or litigation specialist
  • The impact on speed and adaptability on new attorneys will begin in law school.  Some schools have already begun a two-year program with the third focused on technology, lawyer tools, and recalibrating how the attorney will work in the new firm

The law firm of 10 years from now will certainly be different from what we have today.  In this extraordinary time, with the evolution of technology and trinity of forces, firms will have to adapt rapidly.  This fundamental shift will be an opportunity for the firm to become more efficient, create new opportunity, and ultimately serve their clients better.

1 John M. Olin School of Business study