Skip to content

BENCHMARKING REPORT · IT, cyber security and AI in SME law firms 2026

Is your firm doing IT right? It’s the question we hear most from partners and practice managers. So we set out to answer it.

This report combines results from our IT Maturity Scorecard with more than 1,000 conversations with legal-sector leaders across London, the Home Counties and the South East. It sets what we found against guidance from the NCSC, the SRA and the Law Society. The result is a clear picture of where SME law firms are strong, where the gaps are, and what the best-run firms do differently.

 

IT, cyber security and AI in SME law firms 2026, a benchmarking report by Pro Drive

What’s in the guide

  • How firms compare: average scores across seven areas of IT maturity, from continuity and security to strategy and insight.
  • Why criminals target law firms: the five attacks firms face most, and what a single missed patch or day of downtime can cost.
  • Cyber readiness: how certification, staff training and risk assessments affect a firm’s security score.
  • The outside view: what anyone, including an attacker, can see about your email and website security before they ever contact you.
  • The first 72 hours: who does what when an incident hits, from your IT provider to your partners, COLP and DPO.
  • What the leaders do differently: how strategy, budgeting and hardware planning separate the top-scoring firms from the rest.
  • AI in law firms: where firms stand on AI, what’s holding them back, and six questions every partnership should be able to answer.
  • Ten actions for your next partners’ meeting: a practical checklist you can take straight to the partnership.

Still have questions?

Speak to our team