On June 29, Abnormal Security published a post which reported a sharp rise in the number of Business Email Compromise (BEC) attacks involving invoice or payment fraud. BEC attacks impersonate either a party internal to an organization, usually an executive such as the CEO, or an external party such as a trusted vendor. BEC attacks seek to steal money from an organization, usually through persuading an employee to buy gift cards, or by convincing a…

On June 30, Bloomberg Law reported that the District of Columbia Bar Legal Ethics Committee has issued an ethics opinion (Op. 328) saying that its lawyers can accept cryptocurrency as payment for legal services as long as the fee agreement is fair and reasonable and the lawyer can safeguard the virtual property. Attorneys “cannot hold back the tides of change even if they would like to, and cryptocurrency is increasingly accepted as a payment method…

On June 16, Bloomberg Law reported on some of the moves law firms are making as they attempt to weather COVID-19 and a rocky economy. Firms acknowledge that they have discounted fees, deferred payments and used alternative fees, often at the behest of clients. As we all know, law firms have instituted furloughs, hiring freezes, layoff and reducing partner draws. The harsh reality is that many companies are keeping more work in-house to keep costs…

The New York Times reported on June 25 that, in January, Robert Julian-Borchak Williams was in his office at an automotive supply company when he got a call from the Detroit Police Department telling him to come to the station to be arrested. He thought it was a prank. An hour later, he pulled into his driveway in a subdivision in Farmington Hills, Mich. A police car pulled up behind, blocking him in. Two officers…

The New York State Bar Association (NYSBA) announced on June 13th that it had approved a report from the NYSBA Committee on Technology and the Legal Profession that recommends amending the mandatory continuing legal education rule to require one credit in cybersecurity. The credit would be included within the “Ethics and Professionalism” category and would not add to the minimum 24-hour biennial rule for experienced attorneys or the 32-hour biennial requirement for new attorneys. This…

One of the comments John and I hear most often is “I see you guys everywhere!” Well, that’s not an accident. As law firm revenues continue to decline, we hooked up with our good friend lawyer Kellam Parks, who is something of a legal marketing legend, to offer a free webinar on marketing in troubled times. The full title is Never Stop Marketing! Effective Lawyer Marketing in an Uncertain Economy. This webinar is really about…

The fourth annual https://www.hiscox.co.uk/sites/uk/files/documents/2020-06/Hiscox_Cyber_Readiness_Report_2020_UK.PDFHiscox Cyber Readiness Report 2020, published in June, reveals that more than 6% of ransomware victims pay the ransom. Perhaps not really a surprise. I’ve seen percentages as high as 15%. Sometimes, of course, it is the insurance companies who pay. Ransomware continues to be a scourge and will for the foreseeable future. The survey had more than 5500 respondents in the UK and the US. Firms reported on average that…