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Trade secrets are important assets for a business and derive their value due to their secrecy.  Trade secrets constitute confidential business information that give a competitive edge to their owner.  They include industrial, manufacturing, or commercial secrets.  Any unauthorized usage of a trade secret is a violation.  With secrecy, a business can develop an advantage over its competition. By placing the value in its secrecy, the information is subject to outside forces attempting to steal the valuable information. By placing the information on a network server accessible through the Internet, a business organization’s vulnerability increases. Rather than simply risking disclosure by a disgruntled employee or being a victim of corporate espionage, businesses can now find themselves at risk of unauthorized access, i.e., hacking. The Internet allows information to be quickly and easily disseminated all around the world. Information can be accessed by anyone who has access to a computer and the Internet. With the borderless nature of the web, it would be difficult to subject users to the laws and regulations protecting trade secrets. As a result, the United Nations created the World Intellectual Property Organization (“WIPO”) in order to address issues regarding intellectual property, which includes, but is not limited to, trade secrets.

The purpose of WIPO is to create a worldwide intellectual property system that fosters creativity and innovation. Currently, there are 188 members, including, the United States and United Kingdom. WIPO’s services include dispute resolution to intellectual property-related cases such as arbitration and mediation. It provides an annual forum for governments, intergovernmental organizations, and industry groups to meet and discuss issues.

International standards for trade secret protection are similar to the formula adopted by over 100 members of the World Trade Organization. The standard is published as a part of the TRIPS Agreement.  For example, Article 39 states that members must protect undisclosed information (e.g., trade secrets) from unauthorized use that is contrary to honest commercial practices. Also, the information must be secret in nature and there must be reasonable steps to protect the secrecy. Also, Articles 42-49 call for civil proceedings to enforce the standards.

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Trade secrets are vital to a business’s growth and development.  From a practical standpoint, the advantage a business may have vanishes once the trade secret is publicly known. As a result, businesses have employed various methods to prevent the leaking of trade secrets. From confidentiality agreements to encryption, a smart business should attempt to prevent the risks. However, these efforts may not be enough, calling for the need of regulation. In general, the applicable regulations primarily clarify the definitions, parameters, and remedies for trade secret theft.

Uniform Trade Secrets Act

The Uniform Trade Secrets Act (UTSA) has been adopted in forty-seven states and the District of Columbia. It defines a trade secret as information that derives economic value from its secrecy and is subject to reasonable effort to maintain its secrecy.

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What are trade secrets?

In general, the definition of a trade secret varies from state to state. Essentially, it means any confidential information you would not want your competitors to know about. This could be anything from customer lists, marketing plans, to business models. Although, this definition is broad, it is important to look at the exact definition of what is a trade secret according to the applicable jurisdiction. In California, a trade secret is defined as information that takes independent economic value from its confidential nature subject to reasonable efforts to maintain its secrecy. Here, California’s definition of a trade secret places a focus on economic impact. This differs from states such as New York where the law simply defines a trade secret as information that would give an advantage over a competitor. See Ashland Mgt. v. Janien, 82 N.Y.2d 395, 407 (1993). In comparison, New York has a broader definition than California and covers any non-economic related trade secrets.

Why is protection necessary?

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On August 24, 2015, the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit handed down its decision in favor of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) against Wyndham Worldwide Corporation.  This lawsuit was against the defendant and its subsidiaries for their failure to implement proper cybersecurity measures and protect consumers’ personal information against hackers.  The FTC alleged that defendants did not use encryption, firewalls, and other commercially reasonable methods for protecting personal information.

What was the basis of the lawsuit?

In general, the FTC has the responsibility to protect consumers against unfair and deceptive business practices. These illegal practices could range from false advertising to antitrust issues. The FTC has started to prosecute companies with inadequate cybersecurity to protect consumer data. The companies that made false statements about their level of security in their terms of service also had lawsuits filed against them.  In this case, between 2008 and 2009, hackers breached Wyndham Worldwide Corporation’s network and computer systems three separate times. One incident occurred in 2008 and two occurred in 2009.   The hackers were allegedly able to breach the network due to the use of weak and obvious passwords, lack of response to the first incident, and inadequate monitoring systems.  In one of the instances, it took approximately two months for Wyndham Worldwide Corporation to discover its systems had been accessed without authorization. The hackers successfully accessed personal information of approximately 619,000 consumers and managed to cause $10.6 million in fraudulent charges. Therefore, on June 26, 2012, the FTC brought the lawsuit against defendants.  Their motion to dismiss was denied by the district court and their appeal was heard on two issues in order to determine whether there was a valid claim.  The issues that were raised included: (1) whether the FTC had authority to regulate cybersecurity under 15 U.S.C. § 45; and (2) if so, whether defendants received fair notice that their cybersecurity practices were inadequate under the guidelines.

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In general, intellectual property, includes, copyright, trademarks, and patents (collectively “IP”).  According to the World Intellectual Property Organization, IP refers to creations of the mind, such as inventions, literary and artistic works, designs, and symbols, names and images used in commerce. Now, when it comes to the use of intellectual property, what is considered fair use?

What is fair use and how does it affect intellectual property right?

There are multiple ways to protect or claim your intellectual property. When an individual believes that its intellectual property has been misappropriated (i.e., taken without consent), it has the right to demand that it be removed or notify the hosting organization about the infringement, so that they can remove it. The services of a lawyer should be obtained if any of these steps fail. However, before any of these steps are taken, the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (“DMCA”), which is codified under 17 U.S.C. section 512, recommends that the individual making the claim considers whether the use of their intellectual property is fair use. Fair use is defined under 17 U.S.C. § 107, where it states that copyrighted material may be used so long as it is for “criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, . . . scholarship, or research” and it will not be considered an infringement of the copyright. The following factors are evaluated to determine fair use: (1) purpose and character of use; (2) nature or type of work used; (3) amount of the work used; and (4) effect using the copyrighted work will have on its use for the author or creator. When deciding whether to demand removal, redaction, or whether to pursue a legal case alleging misappropriation, individuals should be aware of their legal rights and relevant factors.

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The term RFID is everywhere these days. Consumers are seeing RFID blocking wallets, credit card holders, and passport covers as the holidays approach. However, many still do not know what it is and how it is used in their every day life.

What is RFID?

RFID stands for “Radio Frequency Identification” and is a term used to describe technology that makes identifications via radio waves. It is usually discussed in conversations and articles about the Internet of Things because it is a form of automatic identification. The term automatic identification covers a broad range of identification technologies, from bar codes to retinal scans, used by machines to make identifications. The identification of people or objects occurs through the use of microchips that store electronic information. The microchip has an antenna and the information is picked up through a reader using radio waves. The microchip can be as small as a grain of sand and made out of silicone. Although, this technology has been in use since World War II, it has only become widely used in the past two decades as costs have decreased. RFID technology is now used in certain products and businesses. Walmart and other stores use RFID technology to keep track of products and consumer activities. They use RFID to do anything from detecting an item about to be stolen as it exits the door, or trigger cameras when an item is removed from the shelf. Anyone who has ever used the EZ-Pass toll roads has experienced the use of RFID technology as it is used to identify cars with EZ-Pass. Nonetheless, this is just a limited representation of the use of RFID technology to track consumers and products.

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It is common knowledge that travelers have to take their laptop out of their suitcase upon arrival at airports.  However, not all people know the extent to which electronic devices can be confiscated and searched at the borders whether the traveler is a United States citizen or not.

Why and when can customs officials search your electronic device?

Once electronic devices enter the United States, the Fourth Amendment protects against unreasonable searches and seizures.  However, there is an exception to the Fourth Amendment protection at the borders.  In United States v. Ickles, the court confirmed that customs officials are allowed to search any cargo at the borders. In this case, a search of a vehicle’s cargo revealed a videotape focusing excessively on a young ball boy at a tennis match. A more thorough search uncovered drug paraphernalia, pornographic photographs, computer, and computer discs. The computer was confiscated after the defendant was arrested and searched, revealing child pornography. The defendant requested that the electronic evidence be suppressed claiming that the warrantless search of his electronic devices was protected by his First and Fourth Amendment rights. The court ruled that the search was justified because the border search doctrine indicates that reasonable suspicion and probable cause can be justification for searches without a warrant in order to protect against criminal activity. The First Amendment claim was ruled to be invalid as well because the content of a computer may be searched regardless of how expressive the discovered material may be in order to protect national interests.  The most recent case on this topic was United States v. Kim, which was heard and decided this year. This case was about a foreign national leaving the United States whose electronic devices were searched at the border. The search of his computer was found unlawful because although he may have committed a crime in the past, however, the crime had already occurred, and there was no reasonable suspicion or probable cause to search for imminent criminal activity.

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This year saw the data breaches of Sony Pictures, Ashley Madison, and Experian Credit Bureau. The increasing commonality of data breaches has prompted the federal and state legislatures to review their data breach notification laws.

What is a data breach?

A data breach occurs when an unauthorized user (i.e., hacker) accesses sensitive personal identifiable information. The hacker then copies the confidential information and uses it as he or she sees fit.  Often times, the personally identifiable information is used to commit identity theft and fraud.  This information can include, names, telephone numbers, email addresses, credit card numbers, or social security numbers. The target of these breaches can be businesses, financial institutions, and health care institutions.

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The case of Eagle v. Morgan is about an employer’s access to employee’s social media account. This case highlights the importance of companies having social media policies to address the ownership of social media accounts during and after employment.

What is the case about and how does it affect your rights?

In Eagle v. Morgan, the plaintiff (i.e., Linda Eagle) had founded the company Edcomm, Inc. (“Edcomm”) and remained an employee when she sold her shares to Sawabeh Information Services Company (“SISCOM”). While employed at the company as CEO, Eagle’s coworker recommended creating a LinkedIn account for marketing purposes. Although, the business would occasionally become involved in the social media account’s content, and Eagle used her company email address, however, she was individually bound by the User Agreement and had made connections through her own efforts. Edcomm did not require its employees to have social media accounts and had only limited guidelines in place regarding employee use of LinkedIn. When Linda Eagle’s employment was terminated, the question of who owned the social media account became an issue. Edcomm changed Linda Eagle’s password by using her former company email address and replaced her name with that of her new replacement, i.e., Sandy Morgan.  Linda Eagle sued Edcomm and multiple defendants in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. She claimed that this was an infringement of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act and Lanham Act, as well state laws against invasion of privacy by misappropriation of identity, conversion, civil conspiracy, civil aiding and abetting, tortious interference with contract, unauthorized use of name in violation of Pa. C.S. § 8316, misappropriation of publicity, and identity theft under Pa. C.S. § 8316.

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From a practical perspective, transactions that occur over the Internet can face similar issues that regular business transactions may encounter in their daily operations.  However, e-commerce transactions have the added problems associated with cyberspace laws.  It is nearly impossible for a business to be successful these days without having a website. Although, not all websites actively conduct business over the Internet, however, e-commerce related issues and disputes may arise from having an online presence.

What issues and disputes face e-commerce transactions?

E-commerce transactions have created a new environment for companies that conduct their business on the Internet.  For example, contractual and non-contractual issues, such as free speech, consumer protection, and competition laws now face businesses that ship products, provide online goods/services, and use the Internet for marketing.  Therefore, conducting business online involves unique legal concerns that is distinct from traditional business models.  In sum, the concerns are centered on privacy, security, and regulation.

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