Think you’ve covered all your bases? 3 surprising areas that require intellectual property protection
Safeguarding intellectual property is no easy task in the digital age. As technology and digital transformation efforts have developed, it seems like there’s nowhere to hide your best-kept business secrets. From Coca-Cola’s original recipe to KFC’s 11 herbs and spices, gone are the days of companies being able to keep their IP under lock and key.
Instead, most organizations are diligent about protecting their patents, trademarks, and copyrights. However, there are some areas of business that are often overlooked, leaving valuable IP at risk of theft or malpractice. Let’s discuss three surprising areas that require IP protection and the importance of comprehensive IP safeguarding.
1. Spreadsheets
Spreadsheets power the white-collar world, facilitating data analysis, record-keeping and calculations for businesses small, large and in between. And yet they are usually distributed without any form of protection. Excel-to-web specialists from EASA explain that this is a problem because “spreadsheets are extremely vulnerable to inadvertent (or intentional) dissemination via internal file sharing portals, email, and thumb drives.”
As a safeguarding measure, it’s recommended that spreadsheets containing proprietary formulas, algorithms, and pricing strategies providing a competitive advantage are converted into Excel-based web apps before being distributed.
This technology transforms spreadsheets into user-friendly web tools, allowing businesses to control who accesses their data and conceal any business logic behind the web app front-end. As a result, businesses can eliminate the risk of IP exposure when deploying vital spreadsheet tools.
2. Research and development
Research and development (R&D) departments are hotbeds of innovation, and they generate a wealth of intellectual property. Business resource SmartCapitalMind writes that R&D teams can be responsible for product developments “that range from simple updates of features to dramatic discoveries of new cures for diseases”.
Naturally, dealing with a line of work that produces new designs, proprietary manufacturing processes and cutting-edge technology is accompanied by a large degree of IP risk. And so, failing to protect R&D-related IP can lead to competitors capitalizing on your hard work and innovation.
But how exactly can you safeguard R&D IP?
Well, companies should implement robust internal policies, such as stringent access controls and document tracking. Additionally, they should consider patenting inventions and technologies, as well as keeping detailed records of the development process.
3. Non-disclosure agreements
Non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) are standard legal procedures to protect confidential information shared between parties. So, you could be forgiven for thinking anything stipulated in these litigious documents is safe from prying eyes. Unfortunately, NDAs are often undervalued or improperly drafted, leaving critical IP exposed.
Given that around 57% of US businesses implement NDAs to protect their trade secrets and other IP, this is a problem. Organizations need to stop wrongly assuming that simply placing an NDA is sufficient.
Instead, it’s essential to craft NDAs that are comprehensive in defining what constitutes confidential information and how it should be handled. LegalGPS offers a guide on how to define confidential information in an NDA, explaining that courts cannot uphold too broad a definition, but if you make one too narrow “you could accidentally disclose confidential information that the receiving party would then be able to share with anyone.”
