Extract from Isha Marathe’s article “Courts Tech Evolution Forces Cybersecurity Reckoning—With Different Results”
While state and federal courts have earned a reputation for lagging behind the technological evolution, many have adopted new tools since the start of the pandemic.
Now, with virtual video platforms used for remote depositions and more digital evidence entering legal proceedings,U.S. courts are working out how to safeguard their IT systems and data against a growing number of hackers and bad actors. Some legal professionals say courts are slow to ramp up cybersecurity because they’re in the earlier stages of adopting and understanding technology, and the risks it carries. But others believe it’s an age-old funding problem that plagues any public institution.
Still, one thing is certain—some courts are doing it better than others and funding is a big part of why.
Virginia’s Fairfax County was poised especially well for the tech adoption that the pandemic forced upon legal, and the cybersecurity implications that come with it, primarily because all three of its state courts—circuit, juvenile and general district—have operated under a centralized IT team since 2007.
