If you’ve been considering hiring a virtual international paralegal, you’ve likely weighed quite a few benefits. The lower cost is likely one of those, and for budget-conscious solo firms, that can be a huge draw. But expense shouldn’t be your only worry.
Data security and compliance with US privacy laws also need to be front and center. Can you be sure that your virtual overseas paralegal is on board with everything US law demands? What about client data? How safe is that information, and how can you verify this?
These matters are where DocketWorks truly shines. Below, we’ll break down the risks of not carefully vetting your online help, what makes DocketWorks different, and how your clients (and your reputation) can benefit.
You need to be sure that client information, sensitive case details, and confidential medical data are all secure. No one should be able to see any of this except for you, your paralegal, and your client. But data leaks happen, mistakes happen, and there are very real reasons to make your choice of international paralegal a careful one.
The reality is that, as an attorney, you have no control over how secure, exposed, or vulnerable client data is on the computer of someone abroad. Data leaks, hacks, and even malicious exposure can all happen.
Common tactics to steal data stored and viewed abroad include malware, deception (posing as someone connected to your law firm to request passwords), and hacking of unsecured software.
One noteworthy group, Scattered Spider, consists of cybercriminals who specifically target US firms’ contracted help desks. In another especially bizarre and worrying case, North Korean remote workers used stolen identities to gain employment with US-based companies, gaining access to remarkable quantities of sensitive data and even stealing virtual currency.
This is absolutely not the kind of disaster you want to walk into on a Monday. Client trust and your firm’s marketability may never recover, and you certainly don’t want to be in the middle of an FBI probe. Here’s how DocketWorks is different.
In contrast, DocketWorks uses the end-to-end encrypted, trusted system RustDesk as a virtual terminal, ensuring far greater security and stronger defenses from bad actors. Permitting self- hosting, this feature allows for DocketWorks to control, monitor, and protect data at far greater levels than services that rely on cloud storage.
And RustDesk’s code is open-source. This helps keep things transparent, preventing hackers from privately manipulating code to introduce backdoors or vulnerabilities.
Trained on HIPAA compliance and American privacy law, our ILAs are also working from ABA-approved platforms, such as Clio, MyCase, and Google Workspace. Whichever secure platform you’re already using, your ILA can plug into, as well.
In the background, DocketWorks keeps a close eye on all communications, data, and shared documents to help monitor communications in real time. That’s a level of protection and oversight you simply can’t get from a cheap, overseas hire.
When you partner with an anonymous overseas virtual paralegal, you simply don’t know who you’re working with. Maybe they’re a bright, hard-working, earnest student. But you have no way to dig deep and verify their identity, and even if you had the tools, you likely wouldn’t have the time.
DocketWorks does this all for you. We carefully vet all of our ILAs for accreditation, educational background, employment history, and their actual identities. In turn, their high levels of professionalism and dedication make them trusted, diligent allies against data leaks or confidentiality breaches.
Strong English language skills are an absolute must, and if a candidate is bright and has a strong resume but can’t communicate fluently in both written and spoken English, they’re not selected.
This gives you greater peace of mind when handing over complex documents, delegating email responses, and even using an ILA to help with client intake. When communication is seamless, and both of you immediately understand the terms, stakes, and background of your work, efficiency, trust, and productivity all merge.
That’s a level of confidence you simply can not reach with an anonymous overseas hire.
Considering an overseas virtual assistant? Talk to DocketWorks. You’ll still save up to 50% over a US-based paralegal, but with exceptional professionalism, security, compliance, and full-time monitoring built in.
Your clients, your career, and your professional reputation all deserve the best possible support and digital defense. And that’s exactly what we offer, every day.
Want to learn more about the professional and practical benefits of an ILA? Reach out to us, and schedule a discovery call today.
Grace Singh is a writer and editor for DocketWorks. She enjoys bridging services and client needs in ways that are meaningful, memorable, and human-focused, even as technology continues to change. When she’s not at her home office, she enjoys nature walks, reading, and brewing coffee.