5 Golden Tips To Protect Against Corporate Espionage

 

As we now start off into 2024, Cybersecurity is still at the front and center of just about everything today.  But now there is a new fear that is coming out:  The threat of Corporate Espionage.  You may be wondering, what is it?  Well, here is a technical definition of it:

“Corporate espionage is the act of stealing proprietary information, trade secrets, or intellectual property from a business and giving or selling it to another.”

(SOURCE:  https://www.investopedia.com/financial-edge/0310/corporate-espionage-fact-and-fiction.aspx)

Simply put:  It is not just your digital and physical assets that are at grave risk, now your Intellectual Property (IP) is also.  What can you do to help prevent this from happening?  Here are some tips:

1)     Always make use of Non-Disclosure Agreements:

These are also commonly referred to as “NDAs”.  The idea with this is that you make any relevant party that you are having discussions with sign this document.  It simply means that any trade secrets, or other proprietary information that is discussed cannot be spoken outside of the venue of the conversation.  If the party that has issued the NDA finds out that you have revealed some trade secrets, then by the letter of the NDA, they can technically sue you. But in reality, these are really tough to enforce.  Why?  Because it will be your word against the other party you have accused of releasing this information.  I have signed a ton of these for my own business, and in the end, they don’t mean a whole lot.  But hey, some protection is better than nothing at all.

2)     Know what your IP is:

You would think that a business owner would know what their IP is, where it lies, and how it is used.  But unbelievably, many of them do not know this simple fact.  It’s like acting as a CISO if they know what is contained in their databases.  More than likely, they will say “No, I do not know”.  This answer carries two distinct pitfalls with it:

àIf you don’t know where your IP is, how can you protect it?

àIf you go to court to file a lawsuit against a third party for an IP breach, and the judge asks you, “Where is it?”, and you can’t answer it, you will, for lack of a better term, be laughed out of court.

3)      Do your Due Diligence:

               Before you engage in a conversation with a third party, make sure you carefully vet them first.  In     fact, if you have a procedure for doing this similar kind of thing for vetting out a potential   supplier, follow the same procedures here as well.  If any red flags appear to you in this process,          then you need to decide very carefully how you are going to move forward, if at all.  In this                instance, explain the gravity of what will be discussed, and the repercussions of what could                happen if anything is leaked out, whether intentional or not.  But also keep in mind that      Corporate Espionage attacks could also happen even to your own employees.  For more                information on this, click on the link below:

               https://www.darkreading.com/cyber-risk/former-nsa-employee-faces-life-in-prison-after-     espionage-attempt

4)     Have Security Awareness Training:

This is a theme that has been beaten down who knows how many times during and even after the COVID-19 Pandemic.  But at the risk of sounding like a broken record, it is imperative that you train both your regular employees and independent contractors in how to practice strong levels of Cyber Hygiene.  Also train them in what Corporate Espionage is all about, and what the telltale signs of it are.  Perhaps even launch mock exercises against them to see how they react to it, in a manner very similar to how you would launch a simulated Phishing attack. Also, more information about this can be seen at the link below:

https://www.darkreading.com/cybersecurity-operations/from-snooze-to-enthuse-security-awareness-training-that-sticks

5)     Encourage Communications:

As much time and money you will be investing in training your employees and contractors, you also need to invest the same in establishing ways in which people can reach out to you if there is anything suspicious happening.  Of course, this should all be done on an anonymous basis.  You should have reporting venues that are open and available on a 24 X 7 X 365 basis.

My Thoughts On This:

Protecting your IP is now more important than ever.  Given the digital age that we live in today, anything can happen, especially with AI and ML now taking a firm foothold in our society.  In fact, it might even be wise to consider hiring some sort of virtually related C-Suite title to help you to do all of this.  Or, you can also consult with your business attorney as well.

But the bottom line is that make you sure your employ a multitude of defenses, and not just rely upon just one means.