As a business owner, you may have information you wish to prevent other companies from getting. You might consider some of it to be a trade secret.
While legal measures may be available if someone steals your trade secrets, it’s important to realize how the law defines a trade secret. It may not include everything you assume it would. The following three things are crucial to demonstrating something is a trade secret.
It must be of commercial value
A secret that has no commercial value will not be classified as a trade secret. There has to be a financial reason for you to want to protect it. If a competitor were to be able to use that information to make money, then it may well qualify.
It has to be a secret
Something that is widely known is not a secret, so it cannot be considered a trade secret. It does not have to be something known by one person only, but the scope does need to be relatively small. If everyone in your business, from your cleaner to your receptionist, knows it, then a court might consider it does not qualify.
You need to have taken reasonable steps to keep it secret
You’d need to show a court you have taken steps to limit the spread of the information. For example, storing it in a place that requires passwords that only a few employees receive and having those who access it sign a confidentiality agreement first.
If you suspect an employee or outsider of taking your trade secrets, then you’ll need to move quickly to learn about your options to avoid that information being used or spread further.