March 27, 2025
Our teams around the country have been helping businesses manage their documents, both physical and digital, for decades. Over time we’ve had the privilege of seeing a technological transformation as those documents became more accessible, more searchable, more readily available to those who needed them regardless of where they were working. In the thirty years that we’ve been outsourcing business services to various professional offices we’ve gone from seeing the very availability of digital files being a novelty, to the internet becoming widely available, watching remote work rise, and now we’re at the onset of AI.
As Artificial Intelligence has begun settling into the average workplace we’ve seen a mixture of fear and excitement at the prospect. Surely, for those who love productivity, AI is the innovation that will lighten workloads and ease human errors. On the other hand, new technology always means changes in how we work and what work must be done, and change in the midst of uncertainty can be overwhelming to say the least.
GLC’s services, in most cases, operate with a hands-on approach to office life. Our teams answer phones, greet clients, scan documents, assemble materials, and manage personnel. The onset of AI was not at the forefront of our business model, even when ChatGPT was released with much sensation in late 2022. So, imagine our surprise at realizing that our clients who had been using our services for years found themselves on the cutting edge of AI technology.
We’ve said it before, we’ll say it again, the first step in adapting to AI is digitization. Our partners who had been using our data organization and records management services found that new AI frameworks were able to draw on a wealth of digitized data to inform technology-driven responses.
But the problem of data availability is only one problem that must be solved as AI integrates into business practices. As John Brokaw, GLC’s Director of Records points out “Using open-source AI presents a number of cybersecurity issues which must be addressed to comply with laws and regulations and to protect the security and privacy of data belonging to and practices of the business and its clients.”
He points out some of the specific compliance regulations that disrupt business use of AI on a regular basis:
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Firms must comply with regulations like GDPR, CCPA, and local laws like NYC 144 to ensure the firm’s AI implementations meet security and privacy standards.
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Open-source AI relies on external dependencies, making organizations vulnerable to compromised libraries or backdoor exploits.
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AI applications that rely on continuous learning, such as healthcare or finance systems, are susceptible to data poisoning, an attack which introduces malicious data into the model's dataset to manipulate its behavior, degrade its accuracy, or introduce biases.
As laws and regulations surrounding AI continue to evolve, businesses must remain aware of changes as they affect their business. As with all compliance related changes, they must be adhered to in order to avoid significant risk to your business. Managers using AI must be aware of the evolution of AI protections, as they must also be with changes in minimum wage requirements and similar laws.
John Brokaw further outlines that “There are a number of steps that firms must take to address these issues. Since law firms handle sensitive legal, financial, and personal data, these steps are particularly relevant to them.” He offers the following steps as security measures for electronic data:
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Conduct an inventory and audit to be sure all records and related documents are accounted for and their locations known. This applies to both physical and electronic data.
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Classify data by risk level: public, confidential, sensitive. Tag data using the document management system’s function.
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Restrict access based on need: case teams, attorney privilege.
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Multi-factor authentication for access. Required for every access, no automatic trust.
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Encryption for all transit of client records, financial documents, and case files.
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Do not use public file-sharing applications such as Dropbox, use secure client portals only.
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Use data loss prevention tools such as Microsoft Purview to prevent unauthorized file transfers via email, USB, or cloud.
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Restrict the downloading of large volumes of files by an attorney or staff member leaving the firm. Removal of physical files must also be carefully monitored.
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Implement VPN for remote access.
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Implement AI-driven threat detection such as Microsoft Defender to prevent ransomware attacks, credential theft, data exfiltration.
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Create a data breach response plan and have regular drills.
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Ensure compliance with all relevant laws and regulations.
By integrating AI with GLC’s internal data organization and records management services, firms can strike the perfect balance between innovation and security. GLC’s structured approach ensures that AI models are trained on clean, well-governed datasets while maintaining compliance with regulatory standards. This framework minimizes the risks associated with data exposure and manipulation, offering firms a secure yet flexible environment to optimize their AI implementations.
GLC’s expertise in records management enhances data integrity, reducing the likelihood of vulnerabilities stemming from poor data governance. Ultimately, businesses that build AI frameworks on a foundation of strong cybersecurity and structured data management position themselves at the forefront of technological advancement.
By leveraging GLC’s solutions, firms can confidently harness the power of AI without the fear of compromising security. In an era where data is both an asset and a liability, adopting a well-structured, risk-averse approach to AI implementation is a strategic move that ensures long-term success and competitive advantage.
GLC, as a Business Process Outsourcer, has extensive experience providing records management services in law firms throughout the country. GLC can help firms with their business needs, including the risk-free use of artificial intelligence.