Got the information accidentally but should have known it was protected Learned the information from someone they knew had no right to reveal it Used illegal means, such as theft or bribery, to obtain the information Illegal disclosure may be made by people who: A trade secret can also be revealed legally, and you have no recourse in this case, even if it was not your intention to reveal it. This is true even if the secret was revealed illegally, although you may have options for seeking compensation. If your secret becomes widely known, then it is no longer a trade secret, and you are no longer entitled to trade secret protection. Otherwise, you could have trouble proving that someone else did not create it before you. It's also important to keep good records detailing when you created the trade secret. Non-compete agreements can help prevent ex-employees from sharing your secrets with competitors. You can include non-disclosure agreements in employment contracts and also with potential investors or partners to ensure they are legally bound to keep your secret. Revealing the information to select employees, potential investors or others does not terminate your trade secret rights, as long as you have made reasonable attempts to prevent widespread disclosure. Use non-disclosure and non-compete agreements as appropriate. When outsourcing, try to use multiple vendors for different components, to avoid letting one company know the whole secret. Make it clear to everyone you tell that the information is a secret and should not be shared with anyone, even other employees. Limit the number of employees with access to the information, and grant access only to those who need the information to do their jobs. Use password protection and network security measures. If you don't take security precautions the courts would likely rule that it wasn't a trade secret, and you wouldn't have grounds for legal action.ĭepending on the form of the secret, you have a variety of options available for securing it: Taking reasonable measures to protect your secret not only furthers your goal of keeping the secret, it also strengthens your case against someone who does illegally reveal it. Protecting trade secrets requires maintaining their secrecy rather than filing for protection. For example, if you plan to patent your invention, it is only a trade secret until you do so, because your patent application effectively makes the information public. You may only need to keep them secret until you are ready to reveal them. Not all trade secrets are necessarily intended to be kept forever. Marketing techniques unique to the company New inventions for which you have not filed a patent application Recipes and formulas, like the KFC Colonel's secret recipe Anything that has independent economic value for a company can be considered a trade secret.
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