Video Conferencing from Home Amid COVID – Security is Key!
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How do lawyers keep their video conferencing secure? 🧐
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Shout Out! Nicole "Niki" Black - Attorney, Author, Journalist, Legal Technology Evangelist!
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Next week Niki Black of MyCase will be my guest on The Tech-Savvy Lawyer.Page Podcast!
Niki is not only an attorney but an author and journalist covering the intersection between technology and the practice of law. It was a great interview: She and I discuss how attorneys are underutilizing tech while working from home due to COVID, how products like MyCase can help you during these times, and how she sees the future of the practice of law post-COVID. It will be published for free next week.
BUT THIS THURSDAY, Niki will be hosting a webinar for the D.C.Bar Practice Management Advisory Service, Small Firm Lunch and Learn Series. Her presentation is titled "Top Technology Tools for Remotely Practicing Law." Her demonstration will be about "…new and innovative tools that will help you streamline your law practice. By thoughtfully implementing these emerging technologies, you'll save time and money, making you a more effective and more responsive lawyer."
Come listen to Niki; you will learn a lot!!!
Register here.
Video Conferencing Tip (COVID-19/Coronavirus edition): Dress for Success or Fear the Wrath of the Court!!
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Remember, people can see what is behind you in your office during a video conference!
Read MorePodcast #5: Getting technically ethical with Megan Zavieh
/Megan Zavieh focuses her practice exclusively on attorney ethics, representing attorneys facing State Bar disciplinary action, providing guidance to practicing attorneys, podcasting about legal ethics on Lawyers Gone Ethical, and writing about ethics at Lawyerist.com, AttorneyatWork.com and her own blog CaliforniaStateBarDefense.com.
Join us as Megan and I talk about the ethical obligations attorneys face with our use of technology in the legal arena, especially now as the profession is adjusting to working from home, given the COVID-19/Coronavirus pandemic.
Show Notes:
Megan Zavieh can be https://zaviehlaw.com/
Her blog https://californiastatebardefense.com/
Twitter: @ZaviehLaw
How I Lost My Laptop Full of Client Data and Barely Broke a Sweat by John E. Grant
Video Conferencing Tip (COVID-19/Coronavirus edition): Look Behind You! 😯
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Remember, people can see what is behind you in your office during a video conference!
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The Tech Savvy Lawyer.Page Podcast is now an official Podcast!
/I am happy to announce that The Tech Savvy Lawyer.Page Podcast will be hosted by Libsyn. I will be able to reach a wider audience with Libsyn. But I will also post a link from the blog.
Meantime, you follow the show through your podcast place at http://thetechsavvylawyerdotpage.libsyn.com/rss
New to Video Conferencing? Let there be light! (COVID-19/Coronavirus Edition)
/Video conferencing or virtual meetings are accelerating in demand given COVID-19/Coronavirus. The Shelter at Home Orders requires more and more professionals to work from home. Attorneys are within this bandwidth.
While many attorneys are used to taking their laptops home for some light work, many are not prepared to be 100% teleworking. One of the tools being utilized by both lawyers and the government is video conferencing. Here is a straightforward device to help make you appear a little bit better to the viewer - Lume Cube.
I came across this device last week. Lume Cube (specs) is roughly under a two-by-two inch device that suction cups behind your computer monitor, laptop, tablet or smart-phone device. It helps highlight the video-caster's face. It comes with two light diffusers - warming and softening. It has an internal, non-replaceable Lit-Ion Polymer battery that lasts "Run Time: 2.5+ Hours @ 50% Brightness (30-45min @ 100%)". It is not bad for a $49.95 device (as of this posting down from $79.95) - see the before and after pics below.
The difference is subtle but significant. To control the light settings, there is a downloadable app that allows you to control the light remotely through Bluetooth. You can control the brightness, reduce red-eye, and utilize four different modes (Flash, Constant, Strobe 1, and Strobe 2). Its simple, straightforward, and perfect for the newbie!
Sure, there are other lighting options out there. My only complaint with the Lume Cube is the enclosed Micro USB-A wire is a little short: As I am mostly using this on my iMac and it is short on USB-C inputs, I can't easily use an extra USB-C Hub to power the Lume Cube other than my iMac (unless I have an extra Micro USB-A wire with enough length). But for a starting point at $50, this overall package is not a bad place to begin with for your teleconference lighting needs.
Two Thumbs Up! 👍👍
Happy Shelter-In-Place Lawyering!
Home Office Security Tip #1 (COVID-19/Coronavirus edition)
/The legal profession is one that can weather through this COVID-19/Coronavirus pandemic. We can easily more our place of work from a traditional office setting to a home office with little interruption. But with that transition (especially those not used to working from home), we need to be a bit wearier that our client information is secure. Curious kids, unassuming family members, and those with more nefarious intent can accidentally or deliberately create a security breach, access your client's data files, and cause some bar complaints down the road.
Password protect your home office computer!
Mitigate this with some simple actions: Password protect your computer!
For Mac Users, go to your Apple icon on the top right, select "Security and Privacy," then under the "General" set login password. Power tip: Use the "Require Password" after x minutes when the computer goes to sleep mode or your screen saver begins. This way, you can ensure security should you walk away for a few minutes and forget to log off or shut down the machine. Super Power tip: On the same General" tap, you can use your Apple Watch to unlock your Mac (and specific applications)!
For Windows Users, there are at least two easy ways you can set a password for a user account.
Enter your "Control Panel", under "User Accounts and Family Safety" choose "Change Account Type," under "Manage Accounts" select the "User Account" you want to change, click on "Create a Password", enter your password (look for a future post about creating and securing your passwords), renter your password, elect whether your password is case sensitive, and click "Change" password; or
On your keyboard, Press Windows+I, select "User and accounts", select sign-in options, under "Password" (look for a future post about creating and securing your passwords) select "Add", create a new password, provide a "New password", reenter the password, provide a password hint (if so desired), click next then click finish.
Working from home may be a new challenge for some of us; let’s remember to be smart about it when we do!
Podcast #4: My conversation with Blogger Icon, Carolyn Elefant, of MyShingle.com
/In this podcast, I talk with lawyer, blogger, and entrepreneur, Carolyn Elefant. Carolyn owns the Law Offices of Carolyn Elefant PLLC, a national firm based in Washington, DC focused on power, pipelines, and property rights. Carolyn is the founder of MyShingle.com, which was launched in 2002.
Her blog inspires, empowers, and celebrates solo and small law firms. Carolyn is also the author of Solo by Choice and co-author of Social Media for Lawyers.
Listen in as Carolyn and I discuss the technology changes in the legal arena from over the past 17 years of her practice, how she is using technology to market her law practice and her perspective for the future in legal tech.
Come join us!
Carolyn can be reached at:
SHOW NOTES:
Carolyn's Tech Equipment
SideTrack (extra monitor for your laptop)
Windows/Mac Attorney Specific CRM Products
Windows/Mac CRM Products**
Mac (CRM Products)
Other Products Carolyn Mentioned
* Product I use too!
** There were a couple of product's Carolyn mentioned that at the time of posting, I could not find. But, will update presuming they still exist.
