Law firm IT that keeps client files confidential
Managed IT and cybersecurity for metro Atlanta law firms with 5 to 150 people. We run your systems, protect client information and keep the firm working, so attorneys can bill time instead of fighting computers.
- Help desk and on-site support from engineers who know legal software
- Security built around your duty of confidentiality
- Email and wire-fraud protection for trust account transactions
- Tested backups so a ransomware attack doesn't stop the firm
Why law firm security is an ethics issue
These figures come from the American Bar Association and the FBI. They describe the profession as a whole, not any one firm.
What we hear from Atlanta firms
Most firms don't call because of one big failure. They call because small problems keep costing billable hours and nobody owns the fix.
IT is someone's side job
A paralegal, the office manager or a partner's relative handles computers when they can. Problems wait, and nobody is watching security.
A client sent a security questionnaire
A corporate client or insurer asked about MFA, encryption, backups and incident response. You weren't sure how to answer some of the questions.
Wire instructions make you nervous
Settlement funds and closing proceeds move by wire. One spoofed email could send a client's money to a criminal, and you'd have to explain it.
The software doesn't talk to each other
Practice management, document storage, Outlook and billing each work on their own. Files end up in the wrong place and searches miss things.
IT and security built for how firms work
Most firms start with managed IT and security together. Each service can also stand on its own.
Managed IT
Help desk, on-site support, patching, network and device management, run by engineers who understand how a law office works.
See what's includedCybersecurity
MFA, email security, threat monitoring and wire-fraud controls that support your duty to protect client information.
How we protect firmsLegal Software & Microsoft 365
Microsoft 365, practice management, document management and secure client file sharing, set up so they work together.
Software we supportBackup & Recovery
Daily backups protected from ransomware, tested restores and a written plan to keep the firm working through an outage.
How recovery worksWhat a law firm needs from its IT in 2026
A law firm runs on information that belongs to other people. Client files, settlement figures, medical records, deal terms and privileged emails all live on the firm's computers and cloud accounts. That makes IT more than a back-office cost. It is part of how a firm meets its professional duties.
The ethics rules already expect it
The ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct set the baseline that most state rules follow. Comment 8 to Rule 1.1 says competent lawyers keep up with the benefits and risks of relevant technology. Rule 1.6(c) asks lawyers to make reasonable efforts to prevent unauthorized access to, or disclosure of, client information. ABA Formal Opinion 477R explains that "reasonable" depends on the sensitivity of the information and the risk, and Formal Opinion 483 covers what lawyers should do before and after a data breach, including telling current clients. The State Bar of Georgia publishes its own rules and guidance for Georgia lawyers, and your firm should read them alongside the ABA material.
None of this asks a lawyer to become a technician. It does ask the firm to understand its risks, put sensible safeguards in place and supervise the people and vendors who run its systems.
Where firms are exposed
- Email. Most attacks on law firms start with a message. A stolen password lets a criminal read the inbox, learn who is paying whom and send fake wire instructions that look real.
- Remote access. Attorneys work from home, court and client offices. Every laptop and phone that can open client files has to be secured and kept up to date.
- Ransomware. If files are encrypted and backups are missing or reachable by the attacker, the firm can't work. Deadlines don't move because the server is down.
- Vendors. Practice management, e-filing, document storage and billing tools hold client data. Someone has to check how they are set up and who can sign in.
What good law firm IT looks like
It's not complicated. Every user signs in with multifactor authentication. Email is filtered and monitored. Computers are patched, encrypted and watched for threats. Files live in one organized system with sensible permissions. Backups run every day, are kept out of reach of attackers and are test-restored. And there is a written plan for what happens when something goes wrong, with a phone number that gets a real engineer.
Small and midsize firms rarely need a full-time IT employee to get there. They need a team that knows how law offices work, shows up when needed and keeps a written record of what's in place. That record is also what you show clients, insurers and auditors when they ask.
Four steps to IT you don't think about
Most firms are fully onboarded in a few weeks. We schedule changes around your calendar, not ours.
Review
We meet with the managing partner or administrator, look at your systems and find the risks and daily frustrations.
Plan
You get a plain-English summary, a prioritized list of fixes and fixed monthly pricing for support.
Onboard
We document every system, take over vendor contacts, turn on MFA and monitoring, and fix the urgent items first.
Run and improve
Daily support, patching and backup checks, plus regular reviews with firm leadership on security and upcoming needs.
Three ways firms handle IT
Each option can work. The question is who is accountable when something breaks or a client asks about security.
| In-house, part time | General IT provider | Sentry Cloud IT | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Day-to-day support | When someone has time | Ticket queue, varies by technician | Help desk plus on-site visits across metro Atlanta |
| Legal software | Learned by trial and error | Often left to the software vendor | We support practice management, document and billing systems |
| Security | Antivirus and hope | Basic tools, few written records | MFA, email security, monitoring and a written security summary |
| Wire fraud controls | Rarely addressed | Sometimes, if asked | Email protection plus verification procedures for your staff |
| Backups | Assumed to work | Running, not always tested | Daily, protected from ransomware and test-restored |
| Client questionnaires | Partner guesses | Partial help | We help you answer accurately, from what's actually in place |
Law firms across metro Atlanta
Our engineers are based in Alpharetta and support firms in person from Buckhead and Midtown to the northern suburbs, with remote help for attorneys wherever they are working.
- Buckhead
- Midtown
- Downtown Atlanta
- Sandy Springs
- Alpharetta
- Roswell
- Johns Creek
- Dunwoody
- Marietta
- Decatur
- Duluth
- Peachtree Corners
Questions managing partners ask us
Do you only work with law firms?
No. Sentry Cloud IT supports businesses in many industries. This site describes how we work with law firms specifically: the software, the ethics duties and the way legal work gets done.
Can you work with the software we already use?
Usually, yes. We support common cloud and on-premises practice management, document management and billing systems, and we work with the software vendor when an issue is on their side.
Will you see our client files?
Our engineers need administrative access to run your systems, but they don't need to read client matters. We limit access, log administrative activity and sign a confidentiality agreement so you can meet your duty to supervise vendors.
What does it cost?
It depends on the number of people, locations and systems. After a review, we give you fixed monthly pricing, so you aren't paying open-ended hourly bills.
Know where your firm stands before a client asks
Clients, insurers and auditors now ask law firms how they protect data. A firm IT review gives you clear answers and a short list of what to fix first.