![]() If a person or entity discloses or publishes a trade secret while knowing it was improperly obtained, or by inducing someone to improperly obtain it, misappropriation exists. Misappropriation occurs when a trade secret is improperly acquired or disclosed. If you are asked to sign a non-disclosure agreement that states you can only work on secret information on company computers, and you log in to do some work on your unsecured private laptop in a public place one weekend, this may also be considered misappropriation. For example, if you hack into a company’s computer and copy the files, this act of acquiring the secrets improperly is misappropriation. What counts as “improperly” acquiring a trade secret? Breaches of non-disclosure agreements, industrial espionage, theft, fraud, and bribery are all improper means of acquiring a trade secret. Derived through a person who owed a duty of confidentiality to the trade secret owner.Obtained under circumstances that gave rise to maintain its secrecy or limit its use or.Derived from someone who obtained it through improper means.Misappropriation also occurs when someone discloses or uses a trade secret without consent when, at the time of disclosure, he or she had reason to know that knowledge of the trade secret was: It can happen inadvertently or through negligence. ![]() Misappropriation need not be intentional. Trade secret infringement is called “misappropriation.” It occurs when someone improperly acquires a trade secret or improperly discloses or uses a trade secret without consent or with having reason to know that knowledge of the trade secret was acquired through a mistake or accident. If a trade secret owner does not make reasonable efforts to keep the information secret, it will no longer be a trade secret. Under the UTSA, a trade secret is defined as information that confers a competitive economic advantage over competitors that is the subject of reasonable efforts to keep it secret. Most states have adopted the Uniform Trade Secret Act (UTSA), a model law, or a modified form of it.
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