Trade secrets in Singapore

Singapore, the Lion’s Island, has undergone an impressive journey to become one of the world’s busiest economic centers. From a small island with few natural resources, Singapore has risen to become an economic powerhouse, attracting large investors from around the globe. The trade secrets of the business have led to that success. To protect and store trade secrets in Singapore, Viet An Law would like to guide customers through the article below.

Preliminary Concept of Trade secrets in Singapore

From a commercial perspective, trade secrets can include details about a company’s financial situation, business activities, or customer interactions. An important type of confidential information can be a company’s trade secrets, such as a manufacturing method or technique that gives the company a competitive advantage over other competitors.

A person with access to confidential information is generally legally obligated to keep that information confidential and not to disclose it to third parties. If the person discloses information, he or she is believed to have breached a duty of confidentiality and may be sued in court.

In essence, Confidential Information is data, knowledge, or other information of commercial value that a business wants to keep private. It can be the result of research, development, business experience, or information gathered from other sources.

In terms of characteristics, it includes the following characteristics:

• Exclusivity: This information is not public and is limited to a certain group of people.
• Confidentiality: Information must be protected to prevent it from being disclosed to competitors.
• Value: Information must bring economic benefits to the business, helping the business have a competitive advantage.

Identification of violations of trade secret protection in Singapore

In Singapore, registration is not required to protect confidential information, and there is no specific deadline for this protection. To determine whether an act constitutes a trade secret violation, the court will consider the following factors:

• Confidentiality: The information must be private, not publicly available, and commercially valuable.
• Confidentiality obligation: The recipient of the information must understand that they are obligated to keep it confidential. Even if they receive the information unknowingly, if they learn of its confidential nature, they can still be considered a violation.
• Offender’s awareness: The court will consider whether the whistleblower is well aware that they are doing something wrong. If the person does not know the information is confidential or accidentally disclosed, they may be exonerated.

In short, in order to prove a violation of trade secrets, it is necessary to prove that the information is confidential, that the recipient of the information knew or should have known about this nature, and that the act of disclosing the information is wrong.

A Guide to Protecting Trade Secrets in Singapore

To effectively protect confidential information, businesses need to apply a system of the following measures:

• Restrict access: Give access to information only to individuals who are really necessary to do their jobs, usually managers.
• Close record management: All documents containing sensitive information need to be stored, managed, and monitored with care. Clearly mark these documents with “CONFIDENTIAL”.
• Use a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA): Require all stakeholders, including employees, partners, suppliers, to sign an NDA to ensure they understand their confidentiality obligations.

The success of businesses in protecting trade secrets in Singapore

• Nutrition Technologies, a pioneering company in Singapore, is revolutionizing agriculture. By converting discarded by-products and black soldier fly larvae into valuable resources such as organic fertilizers, proteins and oils, the company has opened up a new direction for sustainable agriculture. To protect core trade secrets such as proprietary formulas and customer information, Nutrition Technologies has adopted a variety of security measures, including confidentiality agreements and trade secret management platform Tangibly. Mr. Martin Zorrilla, Chief Technology Officer, shared: “Our passion is to create a sustainable future. Protecting trade secrets is key to maintaining a competitive advantage and scaling the business.”
• Cynopsis Solutions, founded in 2014, is a pioneer in the field of financial technology (FinTech). With its leading RegTech solutions, the company has digitized and automated complex compliance processes, helping financial institutions operate more efficiently and securely. To protect core trade secrets such as proprietary source code and sensitive customer information, Cynopsis has adopted the highest international security standards. As a result, the company has built solid trust from customers and expanded its business globally.