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Enterprise PKI for Legal Sector
Meet privacy requirements such as Directive 1999/93/EC of the European Parliament for secure communications. The legal profession is now increasingly taking advantage of all the Internet has to offer. The development of information and communication technology has helped reduce carbon footprint and improved the convenience and speed of information exchange. Whether it is to digitally sign an act or to encrypt the sensitive information exchanged between lawyers and their clients such as email communications, the benefits are tremendous. However, these benefits must also be considered in the context of security for all parties, in the framework of a profession where professional secret is key.
- Cost Effective – simply purchase packs starting from only £295 for 5 Digital IDs*
- Provides immediate ability to secure departmental email and electronic documents and provide authentication to public / closed networks
- Perfectly suited for the small to medium Legal organisations or large departments wishing to pilot or start with smaller roll-outs
- Carries no set-up fees and no annual hosting fees - pay only for the Digital IDs issued
- Includes additional 10% of initial purchase in form of free Digital IDs for user attrition and/or support considerations
European Legal Sector Specific Applications
In 1999, the Directive 1999/93/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council was introduced to set the guidelines for the use of digital certificates by addressing the issue of legal recognition. The Directive indicates that advanced electronic signatures can be regarded as legally equivalent to handwritten signatures only if the requirements for handwritten signatures are fulfilled.
This established a framework for the use of digital signatures in the legal profession which have since become common practice and has today also led to a number of independent organisations issuing local regulations to make digital signatures compulsory. The increasing use of signatures has in turn facilitated encryption of electronic communications, thus providing high quality solutions to the main security challenges faced by the legal profession nowadays.
Customer Case Study - requirement to create tamper proof, time-stamped and publicly trusted Government electronic documents
A large solicitor firm in Belgium needed a solution to ensure smooth and easy management of the vast number of Digital IDs they required, following the implementation of the resolution by the Barreau des Avocats Francophones et Germanophones. The regulation of 19/05/2008, as amended by the 29/04/2009 regulation, requires in Article 2.7 that all electronic correspondence from the lawyer is signed with a digital signature. For larger solicitor firms the management of such a high number of digital certificates can be a minefield, as well as costly and time consuming to the organisation.
After the law came into force, the solicitor contacted GlobalSign after recognising the benefits of its ePKI on-demand certificate management solution. After purchasing a pack of licenses suitable for the size of the organisation (50 users) and completing the one time organisation vetting process, the administrator of the account was able to start issuing individual certificates instantly.
By using digital signatures, the solicitors within the firm were not only able to comply with the legal requirements, but can now assure their clients as to the origin and integrity of their email as well as encrypt emails where required, hence protecting their sensitive communications from prying eyes.
