Legacy systems are seen as holding back the business initiatives and business processes that rely on them.
–Gartner
In a world of sensitive and confidential information, it makes sense that lawyers would be risk-averse to adopting new technology. However, this apparently doesn’t apply to Legal anymore, as they now demand more out of cloud computing systems as they migrate from legacy systems.
What is Legacy Tech
It’s now known as legacy tech, but it started out as a trailblazing innovation in the world of legal tech. Any older legal software, systems, and/or hardware that have become obsolete and outdated are referred to as legacy tech. Legacy tech is being phased out and replaced, as legal departments migrate to cloud systems, switch software, or simply update their existing tech.
Gartner says that legacy tech may be holding legal departments back from maximizing their true potential and growing. There are several risks involved in holding on to outdated software that has replacements or smarter alternatives.
Risks Involved in Legacy Tech
Simple Legal notes that the risks outweigh the benefits of legacy tech. It is imperative that legal departments update or replace legacy tech to keep their processes running at optimal levels, and for overall business efficiency.
Here are the top 5 risks when keeping Legacy Tech as it is:
- Lack of patches and updates
- Less internal resource knowledge
- Unfettered access for third parties
- M&A “add-ons” in terms of security
- Evolution of data privacy laws
Identifying the risks involved with using legacy systems is the first leg of the journey in securing legal tech. Optimizing legal tech offers legal departments streamlined processes, and most importantly – peace of mind, knowing that cybersecurity risks are mitigated.
The Case for Modernizing Legacy Software
As legal departments introduce legal tech, or update existing ones, security will always be an issue that is at the forefront. IBM reports that security breaches cost companies on average around $4.24 million – money that can be utilized for smarter processes.
