MANAGING YOUR PRACTICE Digital Privacy, Cyber Security and Data Breach iStock A Growing Concern T he year 2016 marked the 30th an- niversary of ABA Tech Show, and the theme was fitting: digital pri- vacy. It seems no matter where we go, is- sues related to privacy, cyber security and data breach follow us. Since 2008, the Oregon State Bar Bul- letin and Professional Liability Fund have published 13 articles about the ongoing threat of scams, many of which can be traced to phishing emails, data breaches or other cyber security incursions. Most of us want to keep our private in- formation private — and we are ethically obliged to protect “information relating to representation of a client.” Oregon RPC 1.6. What are the top privacy con- cerns now, and what can Oregon lawyers do about them? How We Got Here and Why We Should Care The keynote at the 2016 ABA Tech Show was delivered by Cindy Cohn, ex- 36 OREGON STATE BAR BULLETIN • JUNE 2016 By Beverly Michaelis ecutive director of the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF). The EFF is an interna- tional donor-funded nonprofit, positioned front and center in the movement against government surveillance. The EFF works to promote open source software, encryp- tion, security research, digital privacy and emerging technologies. See https://www. eff.org/. Given this mission, the topic of Cohn’s keynote, “The Fourth Amend- ment, the NSA and the Digital Age,” was not surprising. What may startle you is why her remarks matter. If Cohn’s keynote and EFF’s position is any indication, we are fighting an up- hill battle. Consider the following infor- mation given by Cohn, as a context for digital privacy: Beginning in 2006, and continuing through the Snowden revelations in 2013, the EFF learned that the NSA is tapping into the Internet backbone. A “tap” oc- curs whenever you use the Internet. The result? Your communications are deliv- ered as intended, and a copy is collected by the NSA. Surveillance through tap- ping is direct upstream access to the in- frastructure of the Internet itself. It is used in addition to information gathering from service providers (like Comcast), collect- ing phone records under the Patriot Act, collecting metadata, intelligence-gather- ing under presidential Executive Order 12333 and sharing of information by for- eign governments. Under the prevailing interpretation of the Fourth Amendment, tapping and other surveillance is not a violation of your constitutional right against unlawful search and seizure. Getting access to information stored on your phone is no longer a theoretical fight. Cohn predicted that the outcome of FBI v. Apple would be precedent setting, and in any event, the real debate is about the security of your information in an age when we rely more and more on the digi- tal tools in our lives. “Liberty depends on people having a zone of privacy — wheth- er they’re online or offline,” Cohn noted. Keeping Private Information Private: Practical Solutions for Lawyers and Clients If the battle for privacy seems to be a daunting proposition, is there a way to win the war? Security experts at the ABA Tech Show offered up practical solutions for fighting back: HTTPS Everywhere – Encrypted Internet Browser Extension HTTPS Everywhere is an encryption extension that works with many ma- jor websites. It protects the information you send over the Internet and prevents or minimizes the opportunity for eaves- dropping or tampering with site content. HTTPS Everywhere is free and compat- ible with Chrome, Firefox and Opera. In- stall HTTPS Everywhere, or learn more about the extension, at www.eff.org/https- everywhere percent20/. No-track Internet Browsers, Search Engines and Browser Add-ons • Epic Privacy Browser (www. epicbrowser.com/) is a free al- ternative to Internet brows- ers Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer and Microsoft Edge. Compatible with Windows or Mac operating systems, Epic removes your session data — cookies, browsing history, cached web pages — when you exit. It offers always-on private browsing mode, blocking third- party tracking by websites, ads, social networks and other