Under the Uniform Trade Secrets Act, protections apply to information that is:

Under the Uniform Trade Secrets Act, protections apply to information that is:

• A. A secret, has economic value from not being known, and is subject to reasonable protective measures
• B. Publicly known information
• C. Patented information only
• D. Bank records

Answer: (A)

Under UTSA, trade secrets are information that remains secret, has economic value because it is not known by others, and is protected by reasonable steps to keep it secret. This means the information isn’t public and the owner takes measures like limiting access, using NDAs, and securing data to maintain confidentiality. If information is publicly known, it cannot be a trade secret. Patented information isn’t the same as a trade secret because patenting requires disclosing the information to the public, which destroys secrecy; trade secret protection can exist without a patent, and once disclosed via a patent, that particular information is no longer a trade secret. Bank records aren’t automatically trade secrets either—they must meet the same three criteria to qualify. Therefore, the best choice is information that is secret, has economic value from not being known, and is subject to reasonable protective measures.

Under UTSA, trade secrets are information that remains secret, has economic value because it is not known by others, and is protected by reasonable steps to keep it secret. This means the information isn’t public and the owner takes measures like limiting access, using NDAs, and securing data to maintain confidentiality. If information is publicly known, it cannot be a trade secret. Patented information isn’t the same as a trade secret because patenting requires disclosing the information to the public, which destroys secrecy; trade secret protection can exist without a patent, and once disclosed via a patent, that particular information is no longer a trade secret. Bank records aren’t automatically trade secrets either—they must meet the same three criteria to qualify. Therefore, the best choice is information that is secret, has economic value from not being known, and is subject to reasonable protective measures.