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Trade secret

A trade secret is any type of confidential information belonging to a company or person that provides a competitive advantage in the marketplace.

Characteristics of a trade secret

For information to be considered a trade secret, it must meet the following criteria:

It must be secret

The information must not be generally known to the public or to competitors.

It must have value

The information must provide the company with a competitive advantage.

It must be kept secret

The company or person must take reasonable steps to protect the information from disclosure.

Importance of obtaining a certificate of ownership

If a competitor misappropriates or steals a company's trade secrets, the company may have legal recourse, such as suing for damages or seeking an injunction to prevent disclosure.

It is important for a creator or company to protect and be able to prove if necessary that such secrets are its intellectual property. Since a trade secret can be disclosed by third parties or by persons who have access to the information.

Therefore, it is important to register it, obtain a certificate of ownership and maintain security measures to ensure the protection of confidential information to avoid plagiarism, misuse or theft.

Solution offered by enotar.io

To solve this problem, enotar.io created an innovative and absolutely private solution that allows registering files containing confidential information without the need to be disclosed to a third party, thus guaranteeing that the secret remains a secret at all times.

Using the enotar.io application you can register your trade secret in just a few steps and receive a certificate that is decisive in case of legal disputes, as it provides documented proof of the intellectual property of the secret.

International validity and coverage

This proof of ownership meets the requirements of the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS), which includes international standards for protecting trade secrets. Member states must protect "undisclosed information" against unauthorized use, and to do so, the information must be secret, have value and be protected by "reasonable measures". Although TRIPS includes judicial procedures for the enforcement of intellectual property rights, the application of trade secret laws varies from case to case due to differences in national judicial systems.

Types of trade secrets

Formulas and recipes

This includes any secret formula or recipe used in the production of a product or service. This could include recipes for food or drink, formulas for cosmetics, pharmaceuticals or any other proprietary blend of ingredients.

Industrial Designs

Industrial designs are any unique and original designs used in the manufacture of a product. This can include anything from the shape and appearance of a product to the way it is constructed.

Manufacturing processes and methods

This includes any secret processes or methods used in the manufacture or production of a product. This could include anything from specialised equipment to unique production techniques.

Commercial strategies

Commercial strategies refer to any secret plans or approaches that a company uses to market or sell its products or services. This can include anything from targeted advertising campaigns to unique pricing strategies.

Financial information

Source code

Source code refers to the computer code used to create software or other digital products. This code can be highly valuable and confidential as it contains the instructions that make the product work.

Databases

Databases contain information that is organised and stored in a specific way. This can include customer lists, sales data, or any other type of valuable information that is essential to the operation of a business.

Government

This category includes any confidential information a company may have relating to its interactions with government agencies. This could include information about contracts, regulatory compliance or any other sensitive government-related information.

Startups & Investors

The Startups & Investors category refers to any confidential information a startup may have related to its investors, fundraising activities, or other financial information. This could include sensitive information about investors, pitch decks, or other proprietary information related to the startup's financial operations.

How to register a trade secret with enotar.io?

1. Choose a category

The first step is to choose the category to which your secret belongs.

Among them we can find: Formulas and Recipes, Industrial Designs, Manufacturing Processes and Methods, Source Codes, Databases, Business Strategies, Financial Information, Government Data, Startups and Investors.

Once you have selected the category that corresponds to your secret, click "Next" to continue.

2. Enter Owner Information

In this second step, you will need to provide information about the owner of the trade secret.

The purpose of these fields is to establish the identity of the trade secret owner. This information is important for legal and administrative purposes.

On this page, depending on your situation, you can choose between two options, one in the name of a company and one in your personal name.

If you choose to register on behalf of a company, you will have to enter the name of the company, add its identification number, select the country in which the company is located and in which the secret was created, and add the full name of the company's legal representative.

If you are doing it in your personal capacity, you must add the full name of the owner of the secret, select the country of the owner and add a national identification number.

Once you have completed the form, click 'Next' to proceed to the third step of selecting the digital file.

3. Select a file from your device

You must now select the file to register that contains your trade secret.

Remember that this file is encrypted locally on your device. The original file will never be uploaded to the Internet.

The encrypted version of your document is the one that remains archived.

This ensures that the content of the documents remains private and that the secret remains a secret. It is important to note that the original file should always be kept in a secure location.

You can now move on to the fourth step.

4. Enter a reference name

In this step you must add a reference name to distinguish the certificate of registration. It should not include any private or sensitive information.

Once you have entered the reference name, proceed to the final verification and enrollment section.

5. Review and Submit

Here you should check that all the information you have entered is correct, as for security reasons once the registration has been completed it cannot be edited, modified or deleted.

When you are completely satisfied, click the "Submit" button to start the registration process. A final confirmation message will appear on your screen, click "OK" and you are done.

The registration process will start immediately.

*Relevant information

You can check the status of your records by accessing the "My Records" page.

This validation and registration process takes on average 20 minutes. Depending on server traffic, this process can be almost instantaneous or take longer than expected.

Once the registration process is completed, you can download the certificate or access it at any time from your enotar.io application. You can view, download or share it.