This June, we caught up with Peter Jidesten, CEO of new tech startup iDefendo, to talk file transfers, blockchain technology, and how his company is helping individuals and businesses to protect their intellectual property rights.

What is iDefendo and how can the platform help individuals or businesses?

“iDefendo is a file transfer service that targets IP intensive and creative businesses.

In addition to just transferring files from sender to recipient, we also create a digital timeline of events that can be used to prove that you really did send a specific file at a specific date and time and that a recipient really did download it at some other specific date and time.

These time stamps are then inserted into a blockchain to make them immutable so that you can use them to prove that what you claim happened really did happen. We call these logged timestamps ‘Digital Witnesses’ because that’s really what they are. They don’t prove anything by themselves, but they corroborate our users’ side of the story, and as an iDefendo user you can access them all in an Evidence Binder that we create automatically for you.

We believe that it’s generally good for business and progress when people dare to share their ideas.

It’s our hope that our system can help generate needed trust by making it transparent to the parties in a transaction that everything is logged and provable, and that our digital witnesses are present as a deterrent for anyone who might otherwise think about behaving badly.”

How to did you come up with the idea for iDefendo and what made you decide to use blockchain technology for file transfers?

“We, the founders of iDefendo, have a background as content creators and buyers and sellers of publishing and usage rights. In that space, creators have a very real fear of getting their music, images or ideas stolen. We also talked to inventors, innovators, and entrepreneurs and found the exact same worries in those spaces.

It became clear to us that the point in time when people feel the most unprotected is when they send out their content without a contract in place, so we designed iDefendo to be the tool that you use at that exact point.

Making use of blockchain technology was really almost unavoidable; trust-between-parties-who-don’t-know-each-other is more or less what blockchains are all about, with their distributed ledgers that can be verified by all parties.”

Blockchain technology has been around for a while. What is iDefendo’s key point of difference?

“Indeed, blockchains are not new anymore, and the hype around them is slowly starting to fade. Personally, I welcome that as I think it will make it easier for people to see where blockchains really are the better solution instead of just the hottest buzzword. I’ve seen more than a few implementations where blockchains were shoehorned into solutions where virtually any other data storage technology would have made more sense.

That said, in the right place a blockchain database that can be verified by all stakeholders can create the trust that acts as the grease that makes business run smoother.

But blockchains are highly technical and not necessarily easy to wrap one’s head around. That’s what we hope iDefendo will change by making blockchains useful to all and greasing the wheels of whatever business they are in.”

Being able to prove authorship of documents, when documents were sent and downloaded (and by who) can be critical to a favourable outcome in litigation, particularly in an intellectual property dispute. Has iDefendo experienced much traction in the legal sector and was this something you anticipated before launching?

“When we set out to build iDefendo, our primary target was people in our own backyard – freelancers of all kinds, photographers, songwriters, designers and software developers among others. But when, in preparation for the launch, we spoke to several different lawyers, it soon became clear that legal professionals not only very quickly grasped what we were trying to achieve, they also saw the use for it within their own areas of expertise. Because it’s exactly as you say: being able to prove something is often key. Sure, as a creator of something you generally own the copyright to that something, but how do you prove that? If the something happens to be sensitive or secret, you can’t really register it anywhere. And it’s not always clear from the outset what will be valuable in the future, so even if you could register it you might not be aware that you should until it’s too late.

iDefendo addresses both these problems. First, our digital witnesses are based on cryptographic hashes of whatever content they represent. That means that we don’t have to know anything about the content, or even see the file itself. All we need is the hash – the fingerprint – of the content. And secondly, we automatically log everything so that our users don’t have to worry about forgetting to log something that later will prove to be important.”

In the light of the recent Facebook privacy scandals involving Huawei and Cambridge Analytica, many users are concerned about sending information, particularly commercially sensitive information, using online services. How does iDefendo address these concerns?

“Information security is extremely important to us, for obvious reasons. We’ve built the system using best practices in all areas, with industrial strength end-to-end encryption both while files are in transit and when they are ‘at rest’ within our system. As soon as we don’t need the files anymore because the share has expired, they are securely wiped from our system.

We keep only the files we must keep in order to fulfill the file transfers. And as I mentioned earlier, for highly sensitive information that should never leave the security of the computer or local network, our digital witnesses can still be used without our servers ever seeing the content at all. All we need is a cryptographic hash, and that hash can be created locally within the user’s browser. Cryptographic hashes are the result of one-way hash functions, meaning that they can’t be ‘decrypted’ or leak any information about the content they represent.”

How much does it cost to use iDefendo?

“We have a subscription-based fixed per-seat-per-month pricing that allows virtually unlimited use of the service.

So there are no per-instance fees, once you’re a subscriber you’re free to use the system as much as you want. A subscription costs $120 per user and year, or $12 per month and also includes all necessary storage of the files you send. There is a free tier as well, where we offer much of the same service but that doesn’t include the blockchain-based Digital Witnesses that are automatically created for our paying customers.”

You mention that iDefendo logs everything. How is this compatible with companies’ data retention policies?

“Blockchain records are, as you probably know, immutable. That’s a core feature of the technology, and it’s the primary reason why we use them in iDefendo.

But the immutability might be a problem when you need to clean out something, for compliance or any other reason. To counter that, we’ve built technology that lets users invalidate records that should no longer point back to their owner. By doing so the records are effectively rendered unreadable, and only the owner can re-validate them later as long as they retain the key.

So basically, to remove a record, the user only needs to throw away the validation key in a manner that is consistent with their retention policies. iDefendo does not store these keys in our system at all, so we cannot be called upon to divulge them even if we are subpoenaed.”

Further Information

To learn more, visit iDefendo.

The new program follows on from the success of Code for Victoria’s Innovation Challenge – a collaboration between Code for Australia and the Victorian Government’s Public Sector Innovation Fund – which developed new tools for Victoria Legal Aid, the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning, and the Department of Treasury and Finance.

The Code for Victoria II – Women in Tech Program will ensure the brightest and best women coders and technologists get their chance to work alongside our public servants to improve government services.” – Gavin Jennings MLC, Special Minister of State

The all-female teams of technologists from Code for Australia will tackle the following projects:

• Dispute Settlement Centre of Victoria. The project will help clients understand their rights, match disputes to appropriate support and to solve disputes themselves
• Corrections Victoria. The project will improve offenders’ access to information, support, education and rehabilitation tools to assist them to successfully complete Community Correction Orders
• Department of Health and Human Services. The project will harness technology to improve communication channels for clients requiring housing assistance.

The Victorian Government has partnered with Code for Australia as part of a broad push to build capability across the public service. The program embeds designers, programmers and user-experience experts within government departments for six months to showcase their skills, while helping find new ways to improve services.

The all-female focus of the 2017 Code for Victoria program responds to the challenges associated with the Victorian tech landscape where only 20 percent of current tech workers are women, compared to 46 percent of the broader Victorian workforce.

Code for Australia is a non-profit organisation launched in 2015 that is working to change the way civic technology is designed and created.

Further Information

To find out more about the government’s Public Sector Innovation Fund click here.

To learn more about the Code for Victoria Innovation Challenge click here.

Have something you’d like to add to this story? Leave a comment!

On Tuesday night, the Law Society of New South Wales officially launched what is being described as Australia’s most comprehensive report to help lawyers better understand and tackle future challenges and opportunities facing the profession.

The Future Committee was established by the Law Society of NSW 2016 and its Future of Innovation in the Profession (FLIP) report is the culmination of research and consultation with more than 100 professionals.

When speaking about the drivers behind the report, Law Society of NSW President, Pauline Wright said:

The Law Society was determined to better understand the forces at play in our profession and help arm our members with the insights, knowledge and skills needed to succeed and thrive in the future.

Past Society President and Chair of the Future Committee, Gary Ulman, said:

We weren’t afraid to set ourselves an ambitious task – our Inquiry aimed to not only investigate key trends shaping our industry, but also develop practical recommendations to help future-proof our profession. 

Key Findings & Recommendations 

• Changing cultures, consumer pressure and lower prices are driving increased use of technology

Some of the main drivers of change include consumers seeking value for money and expecting lawyers to be abreast of, and use, technology. According to the Report:

Clients in the wider community have an appetite for cheaper offerings and prefer predictable costs. Solicitors are also encountering expectations that they use technology to provide service in a contemporary way.”

One of the key demographics identified as driving these changes are millennials. As digital natives, they are early-adopters of new technologies as well as faster, cheaper and more effective ways of accessing services online – think Airbnb, Uber, GoGet and Xero.

The Report provides that low-cost or free solutions like ‘DoNotPay’ a free online service (or robot lawyer) designed by a Stanford law student which overturned 160,000 parking tickets in New York and London are growing in popularity.

• Law graduates of the future need a range of new skills and knowledge

The Report focuses on law schools and PLT to produce ‘practice-ready’ graduates, suggesting that students be familiar with using new technology such as data analytics, as well as developing business skills and resilience, flexibility and the ability to adapt to change. Research and consideration is necessary to determine how these skills can be included in existing curricula. The Report also identifies that as legal technology develops and matures, new roles are likely to emerge.

• Innovation has the potential to enhance the personal well-being of members of the profession if the introduction of change is supported appropriately

While the Report identifies change in the profession as necessary and inevitable, it provides that individuals cope with change differently and that lawyers in both the private and public sectors need to be supported and trained through this process, possibly by introducing skills and practices that promote wellbeing into existing or new CPD units.

One government department came up with a novel solution to the challenge of older workers embracing technology. When some workers refused to undertake compulsory computer training, they were matched with younger staff from Gen Y, Gen X and millennial generations. The initiative not only saw the older workers pass the course but also younger workers benefit significantly from the depth of knowledge and experienced shared by their more experienced colleagues. Robyn Bradley, Mental Health consultant says:

I think if we can get the young lawyers working more with the older lawyers to help them with their fears about the technology and to show them how it can be used; and at the same time the older lawyers can pass on practice wisdom and show the young ones that they do know a thing or two … that would be good.”

The Report recommends noting the risk of adverse mental health impacts associated with rapid changes and to focus on facilitating wellbeing when delivering training or drafting new material to assist with such change.

• A centre for legal innovation projects to research and support change should be established

The Report noted a number of trends emerging from the use of technology in the legal profession including the potential to make legal work more enjoyable, effective and efficient as well as promoting competition and changing client expectations.

The Report recommends that the Society establishes a centre for legal innovation projects that actively facilitates innovation in legal technology and engages in the development of emerging technologies. The centre would also conduct and present research into ethical and regulatory dimensions of innovation and technology. It should also raise awareness of justice-related innovation including online dispute resolution.

• Efficacy of online legal documents should be researched including by analysing complaints made by consumers and investigating regulation of online legal information

The Report notes that the popularity of cheap legal documents made readily available to the public online has resulted in an increase in clients only contacting solicitors when they need to determine if the ‘standard’ documents they have purchased are fit for purpose, or to resolve a dispute that has arisen.

Over the last 10-15 years, in particular, the focus of solicitors’ practices has shifted from transactional to contentious largely because of the work of DIY clients. Many clients, for example, are taking more steps to secure their rights unaided such as relying on online legal documents which may turn out to be ‘not fit for purpose’ or obtaining trademark certificates, and only seeking legal advice when a problem arises.

The Report raised concerns that risks to consumers could be significant. The Society is looking into regulating online legal information and actively raising awareness among members of the public about the value of legal advice. It expressed the importance that regulatory touch should continue to be ‘light but judicious, serve the interests of the public, and foster innovation.’

This is likely to directly impact a range of prominent ‘NewLaw’ firms which specialise, for example, in the provision of online legal documents.

• Community needs and funding

According to the Report, the current pattern of legal service usage forms the shape of a ‘U’ where the highest users are at either end of the financial spectrum – from the very vulnerable who come from lower socio-economic backgrounds to the very wealthy who come from high socio-economic groups.

Within this curve of legal service usage exists a ‘missing middle’. Individuals from middle-income backgrounds or small to medium-sized businesses and organisations, who are not eligible for legal aid and who cannot afford expensive legal representation, are left with unmet legal needs. These people often experience legal issues but rarely seek legal assistance.

According to the Report:

this is a particularly dynamic area of unmet need, one which is beginning to be researched in more detail.”

• Draft guidance for lawyers as entrepreneurs and business people

The Report recommends the development of draft guidance for lawyers to operate as entrepreneurs and to develop new ways of doing business.

Final Thoughts

Despite the demand for accessible and affordable legal information and services from large and influential sections of the community, surprisingly, the legal industry is among the last dinosaurs still dragging its feet behind the likes of the health, travel and financial industries. This lack of widespread uptake in innovation and new technology in the face of a rapidly-changing legal landscape is even more pressing, especially given the potential for technology to improve the lives of clients as well as lawyers.

The Report does not deal with the potential for the increased use of technology and innovation to significantly enhance the lives of the broader community which, in our view, should be a key focus of legal services.

Interestingly, the recommendations overlook the need to improve community awareness and understanding of the law and legal issues from a preventative law standpoint.

As the Report establishes, many early stage legal issues faced by young Australians and middle-income earners either go unrecognised or untreated. For this ‘missing middle’ cohort, self-education and personal empowerment can be achieved through greater use of reliable online legal information and resources available through digitised government and other resources.

Indeed, there is much scope for public interest publications such as BucketOrange Magazine to play a significant educative role in lifting community awareness of the law generally. BucketOrange Magazine is not only successfully reaching out to this middle cohort but also providing a facilitative channel bridging the legal knowledge gap through educating the public about the law, the value of legal information, and the importance of seeking timely professional legal advice.

In the next 3-5 years, it will be vital for the industry to adapt, pivot and change direction in response to these identified factors and those set out in the FLIP Report.

What are your impressions of the findings and recommendations outlined in the FLIP Report? Let us know in the comments!

Further Information

Read the full Future of Law and Innovation in the Profession Report (FLIP) here.

Gone are the days of a job for life, and thank God, how boring. Today we must all be ready to adapt and embrace change. The only certainty in our professional and personal life is that things will change whether we are ready or not. So instead of fighting it, make it happen the way you want. Consider the benefits of slash careers, write your own story and don’t be limited by the scepticism and fears of those around you. And remember, even when you feel lost and uncertain and second-guess yourself, don’t worry, it’s normal, we’ve all been there. Just hold strong and have faith in yourself and if all of that is too hard, then just pretend until your ego catches up to your success!

I wanted to be a famous actress

For me, the attributes of embracing change, remaining adaptable and having a love and understanding of language have all been integral to my career. These attributes were incubated in the performing arts. Yes, I wanted to be a famous actress. I know, not the most common starting point for a lawyer.

Or … maybe a lawyer

After studying performing arts at UWS Theatre Nepean and taking up acting, I then found myself
teaching … something I had never planned on doing. Then, with the intervention of a good friend, I decided to take the leap and study law.

I remember being terrified because I really didn’t think I had the brainpower. I was always the fun, bubbly, arty one … not the serious lawyer. Thankfully, my brain cells managed to multiply and I ended up practising law for about nine years before moving from the legal arm at one of the big four banks to the frontline as a bank manager.

Now I am thankful for the skills I’ve picked up along the way because they enhance my client-centric focus in my current role at Nexus.

Opportunity doesn’t knock, it whispers!

To me, life is like reading a book. You don’t turn to the last page to find out how it pans out. You want to see how it develops.

If someone pointed me out to you in the theatre while portraying Hermia in Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream and said, “Wow… she’d make a great general manager for a bank in 20 years’ time”, you’d laugh. For me, this is the most exciting thing about my career to date. I never saw any of it coming.

As my father once said to me, “opportunity doesn’t knock, it whispers, and you have to be listening.”

My journey into the law was amazing and a turning point for how I saw myself and my potential. Can you believe it? I was awarded first-class honours! And while I loved law and its practice, I didn’t like the way the traditional firms operated so, embracing change yet again, I moved to Hobart and began a PhD in bioprospecting.

Eventually, I came back to Sydney and worked in a couple of law firms including Truman Hoyle, which embraced my non-traditional lawyer personality. The more I practised law the more I became interested in what my clients did. I used to call it the “so-what” factor.

The law books say you can’t do it, but so what?

Really … a banker?

I contemplated work in business and ended up as legal counsel at Westpac. My inquisitive nature is never quelled and I started looking on the bank’s intranet to better understand its business. I thought the frontline sales team could do with some co-ordinated support, so I put together a proposal for a new job for myself. It coincided perfectly with Gail Kelly’s move to create a customer-centric culture. A series of secondments upskilled me to the extent I was then appointed as the bank manager at Hurstville, one of the top four branches in the country.

It was amazing. I loved it. Again I could feel my brain cells multiplying. It was a completely different skill set. Everything I had learnt as a lawyer actually hindered me. I had to learn to retrain a lot of things, even just simple communication.

I realised that legal language is terrible. After my experience as a bank manager, I now approach it differently. I can appreciate the mindset you get into as a lawyer, it is challenging, but it doesn’t work for everyday Australians, and that is who we are servicing. Communication fascinates me and I learnt that bankers are very good communicators because they are sellers. Lawyers traditionally aren’t.

And back to law … but no longer a “handbrake!”

Now back working as a lawyer I appreciate just how difficult it is to run a business unit. It’s a completely different skill set and I have huge respect for my clients and the work they do. What we do as lawyers is such a tiny facet of their business. It’s not everything, not the be all and end all. When you’re in a law firm you can trick yourself into thinking it’s a really important thing. It’s not, and for business it’s a headache and they don’t even want to think about the headache. No one wants to know about it.

The challenge is to be seen as part of the solution, not part of the problem.

When I was moving into the business arm of Westpac, the people who gave me a shot were more interested in my performing arts background. That’s what gave me the edge. My legal background was a concern to them. A lawyer in their minds was a handbrake. But a lawyer can be part of the solution.

What people think they need isn’t necessarily what they do need, and that’s where the skill set of the lawyer and the skill set of the banker come in. The theatrical background and love of teaching were integral to my success in the national manager role at Westpac, especially upskilling regional bank managers. Everything is simply a problem to be solved.

Many businesses and legal firms talk the talk when it comes to collaboration and collective wisdom, but few walk the walk. They baulk at bringing in people with different skill sets. That’s not the case at Nexus. It’s all about complete collaboration and striving for success. It’s all client-centric. Law is the only industry that thinks it doesn’t have to concentrate on customer service. My skill set from Westpac is a perfect fit – for me, the client is at the centre of everything.

Good business structure involves flexibility and strength. Those attributes apply to a good lawyer and a good law firm.

So remember … enjoy the journey, own your path and don’t apologise for taking a different route. Often it’s the choices that fill us with the most fear and make the least sense that end up defining our success and happiness.

What do you think about the prospect of sticking with one career for your entire professional life? Is the diversity and constant interest of a slash career something that interests and excites you? Let us know in the comments!