Comments on: Trade Secrets and Intellectual Property

By: Emmanuel Carabott

Emmanuel Carabott — Mon, 01 Aug 2011 11:04:25 +0000

Tana brings up a very good point. Users should be aware that having some access denied, if they do not really need that access, is actually a good thing for them and the company.

If an attacker were to compromise their account, possibly even through no fault of their own, and with that manages to damage the company, they will be in for trouble. They will be investigated and their security practices will be questioned.

Users should indeed, as Tana rightfully mentioned, just ensure they get the access that they need to get their job done. Anything else just exposes them and the company to unnecessary risks.

By: Tana

Tana — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 08:02:08 +0000

Internal regulations that divide access and use the least privilege principle can help. In one of my previous jobs where I wasn’t a programmer and I didn’t need access to the source code, I explicitly asked not to be given one. Can you imagine how shocked my bosses were when they heard my motives?
All the cases which Emmanuel lists are good examples of what happens when you have a Trojan horse inside.

By: Emmanuel Carabott

Emmanuel Carabott — Fri, 08 Jul 2011 14:20:57 +0000

Thanks for bring that story to our attention Elaine, personally I have not heard of the case, guess it’s too fresh.

Thanks again!

By: Elaine Tjom

Elaine Tjom — Thu, 07 Jul 2011 12:43:38 +0000

This type of theft is the worst. It can surely kill a business. Just recently, CME Group filed a case against one of their senior programmers. The programmer was Chunlai Yang. He was arrested just last week. He worked for CME for more than 10 years.

CME said Chunlai Yang illegally downloaded source codes of their software. They suspect that he is selling the source codes to China. This case is still under investigation by the FBI.

By: Vivian Wee

Vivian Wee — Wed, 06 Jul 2011 07:34:44 +0000

Trade secrets and intellectual properties are what keep businesses apart. We can’t drink the same testing cola, can’t use the same kind of laundry detergent, etc. Pepsi is Pepsi – Coke is Coke. The taste of Coke is what it identifies itself.

As consumers, we need diversity to what product or service we will use. We’re always looking for different things. And if some breaks this diversity by sharing trade secrets and IPs, we can’t differentiate Coke from Pepsi. We’ll all be using the same things.

Trade / IP theft is not new anymore. But these days, they’re more sinister than before.

By: Christian Gregory

Christian Gregory — Tue, 05 Jul 2011 21:26:09 +0000

There is certainly increased risk of internal breaches as more and more people equate that their proprietary information is a valued commodity to be moved between their employer and its competitors.

If people want to take that risk, there is enough legal precedent so that they know precisely what kinds of repercussions face them. And the dumbest criminals are the ones who don’t think they can be caught, especially if their employers are keeping current on their security measures.