Key Takeaways
- Engineering companies rely heavily on intellectual property to run their businesses and stand out in a competitive field.
- Intellectual property is often targeted in cyberattacks due to its inherent financial value.
- There are four types of intellectual property: patents, trade secrets, trademarks, and copyrights.
- Patents, trademarks, and copyrights should be filed with appropriate government agencies to receive legal protection.
- A robust cybersecurity strategy is essential to protect intellectual property stored digitally.
For organizations in the engineering industry, your intellectual property is one of your most crucial assets. High-quality intellectual property gives you a competitive advantage in the industry, helping you create innovative new technologies.
Because engineering IP is so valuable, it is often targeted by threat actors and competitors. Because of this, your organization should have an intellectual property protection strategy in place to keep this information confidential.
Here’s how to protect intellectual property and keep your business safe and secure.
Common Types of Intellectual Property in Engineering
There are four primary types of IP that organizations produce: patents, trade secrets, trademarks, and copyrights.
In some cases, intellectual property rights and legal protection are automatic. However, in other cases, IP must be registered with the appropriate government agencies.
Patents
Patents are legal documents that protect the right to an invention. A patent gives the inventor the exclusive use of their invention for a specific period of time—usually 20 years from the filing date. This prevents unauthorized use or sale of the invention during this period. These are several different types of patents, including utility patents, design patents, plant patents, and more.
In the US, patents are registered with the United States Patent and Trademark Office, or USPTO. Inventors must submit extensive documentation of their idea or product as part of the patent application process. Some patents require maintenance fees to remain active.
Trade Secrets
Trade secrets are pieces of confidential information held by your company that are not public or widely known. To qualify as a trade secret, the intellectual property must have financial or economic value and be kept secret from competitors.
Unlike many other types of IP, trade secrets do not need to be registered with USPTO or any other government agency. They are automatically protected by law through the Uniform Trade Secrets Act and the Defend Trade Secrets Act.
Trade secrets are the most valuable form of intellectual property for many organizations in the engineering space. Teams must take extensive care to prevent this proprietary information from spreading to competitors, either by accident or as the result of a dedicated attack. One study found that disclosing the existence of trade secrets increased the possibility of a cyber attack by approximately 30%.
Trademarks
Trademarks are a type of intellectual property identifying your organization’s products or services. Examples of trademarks include symbols, logos, words, phrases, sounds, or color ways associated with your brand.
Trademark registration is processed through the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Registered trademarks can be renewed indefinitely and help protect against counterfeit products and other forms of fraud.
Copyrights
Copyrights provide legal protection for original creative works, such as books, paintings, music, video games, and more. This gives the creator the exclusive right to sell or distribute their work.
Copyrights are processed through the U.S. Copyright Office. For modern works, copyright generally lasts for the length of the creator’s life, plus 70 years.
Strategies for Securing Intellectual Property
There are several steps your organization can take to protect your intellectual property and valuable business information. This ensures that the IP stays within your organization and that you can take successful legal action in the event of IP infringement.
Conduct Thorough Research & Documentation
Intellectual property protection starts with documentation. Start by going through your organization’s portfolio of work to identify concepts and products that may qualify for protection under intellectual property law.
You may need to conduct research on your competitors to determine which ideas meet the qualifications for intellectual property protection. For example, if your product is too similar to an existing technology, it may not qualify for patent protection and could result in legal challenges down the road.
Once you’ve identified pieces of IP that require protection, create extensive written documentation for each concept. These documents should explain how the concept works and prove its originality. Drawings, photos, and videos may also be helpful.
Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDAs)
Next, ask team members who work with IP to sign non-disclosure agreements. This is a contract that requires both parties to keep certain information confidential. NDAs may be necessary for both employees and third-party service providers.
These confidentiality agreements will give your firm legal protection in the event that an employee shares IP outside of your organization. Before finalizing these contracts, have them reviewed by a lawyer to ensure that all relevant information is covered and that the agreement will hold up in court.
File for IP Protections Early
The earlier you file for IP protections, the better. If you wait to file, you may not have legal rights to your IP if it is stolen or compromised.
Make sure to apply for patents, trademarks, or copyright protection as soon as your ideas are established. It can take time for government agencies to process these IP protections—for example, it usually takes at least one year to approve a patent application.
Implement Strong Internal Policies
Put robust internal policies in place for IP protection so your entire team is on the same page. This starts by training your employees on the importance of securing your IP. All IP data should be stored in secure servers and should be encrypted for additional privacy.
Employees should also receive detailed training on how to access and store sensitive data when working online. On top of that, they need to learn how to identify and avoid cyberattacks that could compromise your IP. Engineering firms are often targeted by cyberattacks—in fact, attacks in this sector in the US increased by 46.15% between 2023 and 2024.
Protecting your IP will require strong access controls that use multi-factor authentication to verify user identities. Access to sensitive information should be kept limited to reduce the risk of a data compromise. Ideally, employees should only have access to the information and tools necessary to do their jobs.
Finally, establish policies to define who owns the IP your employees create on the job. If an employee develops a new technology as part of their work, does that technology belong to the employee or to your organization? This should be specified in all employment contracts to prevent future legal battles.
Label Sensitive Information
In many cases, intellectual property compromises aren’t malicious. Instead, they happen when employees expose IP by accident, not realizing that they’re sharing sensitive information.
To prevent this from happening, make sure that all IP and sensitive data is properly labeled in your systems and databases. Access to this information should also be limited to specific employees or partners, rather than making it available to everyone in your organization.
Monitor & Enforce IP Rights
Implementing 24/7 system monitoring will help you identify security breaches that could lead to IP theft. This gives you the opportunity to address the security violations in real time, determine whether your IP was compromised, and take legal action if needed.
Additionally, stay up-to-date with the latest IP laws and regulations, as well as the latest cybersecurity threats. Use this information to update your systems and your intellectual property management strategies as needed.
If you think your IP may have been compromised or violated by a competitor, don’t wait to seek legal advice. Enforcement of your IP rights is necessary to protect your brand’s reputation and your finances.
How Can an MSP Help Secure Your Firm’s IP?
Managed IT services providers (MSPs) serve as your third-party tech partner, providing essential IT, cybersecurity, and compliance services.
An MSP can help you secure your intellectual property in a number of ways. These include:
- Implementing new cybersecurity measures
- Monitoring your systems 24/7
- Providing employee security training
- Conducting regular software updates and data backups
Your MSP will get to know your organization and your unique cybersecurity needs. They’ll put robust security measures in place to help you keep your intellectual property safe and private.
Choose Diamond IT
As a trusted MSP, Diamond IT offers comprehensive cybersecurity support to keep your intellectual property safe and secure. Our services are scalable and will be tailored to your organization’s needs. We’ll partner with your internal team to find security solutions that are appropriate for your industry and the size of your organization. Get in touch today to protect your intellectual property.