Cyber-Security Corporate Governance: Three Essential Steps To Form A Cyber-Security SWAT Team

Last year, Canadian Lawyer InHouse Magazine¹ posed the question, "Should in-house counsel be asking more questions about the strength of their company's cyber systems..." and they cited the Association of Corporate Counsel 2012 survey that reported 28 percent of their companies had experienced a cyber-security breach in the preceding 12 months and "data breaches and protection" as one of the top issues keeping them up at night.² In my view, the best answer to that question is – in-house counsel should be actively participating in providing cyber-security corporate governance leadership and risk management guidance, including legal and compliance advice.

Regardless of your industry or business sector, whether retail, transportation, financial services, manufacturing, energy or otherwise – there are now daily (if not hourly) news reports of aggressive, targeted and damaging cyber attacks that cause significant financial, reputational and commercial harm to