Today's law firms have thousands of contacts. The best contact management software does more than just store them, it tracks relationships and helps with lead generation. Steven Maxwell, a recruitment officer, found that his company was able to avoid contracting with an executive search company in two-thirds of its hires last year, thanks to software that made the data searchable, ranked the contacts by the quality of the relationship and is even accessible by Web-enabled cell phone.  Read more »

Individuals at all levels of an organization must understand its technology before it's deployed, especially if classified or other highly sensitive information is at risk. The increasing use of PDFs -- a step forward in that they make disseminating information easier -- presents new security risks. To play it safe, law firms, corporations, government agencies and the military all must implement best practices for redacting sensitive data from electronic documents.  Read more »

A Russian junk e-mailer takes credit for this week's attacks on antispam firm Blue Security. He did it to gather fresh e-mail addresses, he says. By Joanna Glasner.

Originally by Wired News: DAT's Entertainment, 10:54 AM

Read more

England's 400 year-old cyber signature law

The High Court in Manchester has ruled that an email cannot be recognised as a legal written offer if it does not contain a signature or name within the body of the mail. The inclusion of a user name in the message header is not enough.…

Originally by The Register - Internet and Law: Digital Rights/Digital Wrongs, 10:50 AM  Read more »

In the first prosecution of its kind under the Spam Act 2003 (Cth) (‘Spam Act’), Nicholson J of the Federal Court of Australia yesterday found Clarity1 Pty Ltd and its managing director to have contravened provisions of the Act.  Read more »

A company accused of using unauthorized personal data “mined” by other firms from about six million e-mail addresses across the US has agreed to reform its practices under a $1.1 million settlement. New York Attorney-General Eliot Spitzer said Datran Media used e-mail addresses and other personal data it obtained from several companies.

'Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton used to reach more than 7 000 current and prospective clients by e-mail newsletter. But with new spamming laws and better anti-spam software, the firm was "running the risk of being blacklisted," says Vickie Spang, Sheppard Mullin's chief marketing officer. The solution? Blogging. And not just one blog -- six of Sheppard Mullin's practice areas have blogs. To encourage new content, the firm lets associates count blogging time toward billable hours.'  Read more »

This somewhat alarmist article urges caution when using instant messaging ('IM') in a legal environment:

As the use of instant messaging becomes more widespread, companies must grapple with how to handle it. In some cases IM can legally be considered a document, subject to the same retention policies as other business records. Because there is a functionality that allows all IM to be preserved, a company potentially is subject to a claim of spoliation if it doesn't save all chat messages. Instant messaging is fun, casual and quick -- but it can be dangerous.  Read more »

Telstra has initiated proceedings against Orion Group, a Tasmanian telemarketing corporation and reseller of wholesale telephony services. Telstra alleges that Orion has harassed its customers, transferred users to its services without permission, and misrepresented Orion’s relationship with Telstra.  Read more »

koweja writes "The federal appeals court has is hearing a petition to overturn an FCC rule that extends current wire-tapping laws to cover VoIP calls. The petition comes from various privacy advocacy groups, including the Center for Democracy and Technology. Aside from the obvious privacy issues, the rule requires that providers use equipment that allows wiretaps, which would require many companies to "upgrade" in order to comply."

Originally by samzenpus at Slashdot: Your Rights Online, 9:51 PM  Read more »