Tech Report 2019 – Cloud Computing – Law Technology Today: “…To keep it simple, the 2019 Legal Technology Survey has focused on the basic concept of a “web-based software service or solution,” including SaaS. In practical terms, you can understand cloud computing as software or services that can be accessed and used over the internet using a browser (or, commonly now, a mobile app), where the software itself is not installed locally on the computer or phone being used by the lawyer accessing the service. Your data are also processed and stored on remote servers rather than on local computers and hard drives. Cloud applications might also be referred to as “web services” or “hosted services.”  Cloud services might be hosted by a third party (most commonly Amazon or Microsoft) or, more commonly in the legal profession, by a provider running its services on Amazon, Microsoft, or another cloud data center provider. It’s also possible, though unlikely, that a law firm could host and provide its own private cloud services…The 2019 Legal Technology Survey shows that for a small, but slowly growing, majority of lawyers and firms, cloud services are now part of the IT equation. Overall, reported growth in cloud use stayed relatively flat in 2019. The continuing lack of actual attention to confidentiality, security, and due diligence issues, however, remains a serious and disturbing concern, especially with the growth in mobile apps running on cloud services. The results on security procedures will continue to fuel client concerns about whether their outside law firms are making adequate efforts on cybersecurity, and the numbers indicate that they should be worried…”