Five great industry news stories from this week you may have missed.
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Legal tech to the rescue
The year 2020 was a big year for the legal industry. Virtual hearings and electronically witnessing documents, once considered difficult or impossible, are now the norm. A recent CBA/ABC National article investigates how 2020 ushered in a long-overdue tech revolution through a surge of acquisitions that have caused law firms, legal departments and courts to quickly shift. What's still to come? "A renewed focus on legal operations also promises to be a significant trend in the year ahead." Read the facts here.
ACEDS Furthers Commitment to Diversity with Pipeline to Practice Partnership
The Association of Certified E-Discovery Specialists (ACEDS) is joining forces with the Pipeline to Practice Foundation to foster diversity and inclusion in the legal profession and offer educational opportunities to diverse law students and early-career lawyers. This collaboration marks a significant step in the association's ongoing commitment to diversity within the eDiscovery community and the broader legal profession. Learn about the new resources that will be included here.
Here’s How Worried You Should Be About Those Tom Cruise Deepfakes
Videos of Tom Cruise doing magic and playing golf are a threat to global democracy. Or at least that’s what the overwhelming reaction has been to the viral deepfake images of the Hollywood star that were posted on TikTok last week. The "highly-polished yet obviously fake videos" garnered over 11 million views, though were suddenly deleted from the poster's TikTok account on Wednesday morning. Didn't have a chance to see them? A recent Vice article shares links to the short clips and weights in on whether these types of videos could foreshadow a dark future of misinformation for the masses.
The best time to start your information governance program is now
Building an Information Governance (IG) program within an organization can feel like a daunting task. While it does come with its own set of challenges, these challenges eventually result in streamlining the organization’s entire information platform. Read Kedar Thakkar's recent article on Ricoh USA's website to learn some of the most common myths and misconceptions around creating an IG program and how you can simplify the initiative.
Chatbots that resurrect the dead: legal experts weigh in on ‘disturbing’ technology
It was recently revealed that in 2017 Microsoft patented a chatbot which, if built, would digitally resurrect the dead. Using AI and machine learning, the proposed chatbot would bring our digital persona back to life for our family and friends to talk to. When pressed on the technology, Microsoft representatives admitted that the chatbot was “disturbing”, and that there were currently no plans to put it into production. This week, The Conversation wrote on one particularly concerning issue: the fact there is currently no way for you to opt out of being digitally resurrected. What could this mean? In the future, private companies may offer family members an agonizing choice: abandon your loved one to death, or instead pay to have them digitally revived.
