IP Intelligence › Ask a Question › What am I actually trying to protect?
Guided answer
What am I actually trying to protect?
Different rights protect different things. This narrows down which conversation you should be having.
Trade secrecy, with real controls.
India has no dedicated trade secrets statute. Protection depends on contract and on the equitable duty of confidence, which requires evidence that the information was communicated in confidence.
- Access controls, marking, employment and consultancy terms, and a real exit process.
- Document the technical record with dates and named contributors.
- Test regularly whether it is still invisible in the product - if that changes, so does the right answer.
Read next
This is educational guidance, not personalised legal advice. It cannot see your documents, your dates or the prior art, and those are usually what decide the answer. Use it to understand the question, then take advice on your own facts.
Not sure whether this applies to your invention?
The honest answer usually needs someone to look at your actual disclosure, your timeline and the prior art. That is a conversation, not an article.