A number of those who follow me on Twitter are employment lawyers and they are often the ones who react when I post or tweet something about data arising from forensic investigations. There are others (or perhaps the same people) who seem to have an interest in gin. I have an event recommendation for both the interest groups.
FTI Consulting is giving a talk in London on 16 November called Exploring computer forensics and employment law. Its starting point is a survey result whose key conclusion was that 69% of respondents see the greatest threat of data theft coming from within their own organisation.
It is not just theft e.g. of intellectual property or confidential data. There are many other reasons why employers might need to know what data they have got, where it is and what is happening to it. Organisations need to know that they are complying with regulatory obligations and it is better to find out about a problem for yourself than have it exposed by a whistleblower. They face Subject Access Requests, and there will be more of these when the GDPR comes into effect next May. Mergers and acquisitions bring the burden of hidden threats as well as new opportunities.
Chris Hatfield, Senior Director in FTI’s computer forensics team who is leading the event emphasises the potential difficulties
“The proliferation and increasing capabilities of technologies such as smart ‘phones and cloud systems which are now frequently encountered in the workplace, combined with an increase in the technical ability of users, has meant we’re seeing more and more clients facing an array of complex legal and technical situations where these technologies play a role.
Quite often, where these are encountered in an employment related matter, the legal teams may never have dealt with or know how to tackle the technology effectively. It’s essential that lawyers are aware of the risks and complexities that these technologies pose, and are taking advantage of the appropriate capabilities and technology available to stay ahead of these challenges at all stages of the employment lifecycle.”
One does not necessarily need any additional inducement to come to an event of this range, but FTI offers one anyway – the serious part of the evening is followed by a gin tasting tour of the world which will include an opportunity to see how to make the perfect G&T, Martini and cocktails.
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