Texan business owners like you likely have a trade secret or two under your belt. These are aspects of your business that are unique to the way you run it, and can potentially give you an edge over your competition. Because they provide this edge, protecting it becomes crucial.
Many businesses attempt to steal the trade secrets of popular, successful companies in order to get some of that success for themselves. The World Intellectual Property Organization takes a look at how trade secrets are protected. If they fit certain categories, they can actually be protected under the law. The requirements are:
- It must be a secret
- Reasonable steps must be taken by the rights holder to keep it a secret
- It must hold commercial value strictly because it is a secret
Anything that does not fall under these categories technically cannot be called a trade secret. However, if you have a legitimate trade secret on hand, you are going to want to do everything you can to protect it.
Invest in any type of security you might need. Are your secrets stored digitally? Have a cyber security expert on hand to make sure there are no back doors that hackers can get in through. Are your secrets stored physically, such as a recipe within a vault? Have a system in place that allows you to easily keep track of the information and how it is spread and used.
Trade secrets can relate directly to your livelihood as a business owner. No expense should be spared in order to keep it safe.
