American Bar Association (ABA) Data Breach: What you need to know

This week the ABA disclosed a security breach from March 2023. Per the ABA, the accessed data included usernames and (salted/hashed, i.e. one way encrypted) passwords, for both the ABA website prior to 2018, and the ABA Career Center since 2018. They have sent an email notification to many effected users.

How this impacts you

The good news is that according to the information disclosed, the breach was very minimal. However, you should still take immediate steps to protect yourself:

• Be extra vigilant, hackers frequently will use the information (ABA membership and the relevant email) to conduct targeting phishing attacks.

• Reset your ABA account password(s) out of caution.

• If you are reusing your ABA passwords anywhere else, reset those as well. Then begin utilizing a password manager which will make it easier to use unique passwords (more personal security tips here).
  

Although there is no further indication or information regarding additional risks, it is common for a company to not realize the extent of a breach until more time has passed and additional investigations are completed. Keep an eye on the news and watch for additional emails from the ABA.

Have more questions about security for your law firm? Contact us.