11/29/2005

Industrial Espionage

We all know that to start a business or to come up with a new product is not a cheap thing to do. Many companies spend millions of dollars for this purpose in product development. So when it comes to other companies trying to copy the idea, where do we draw the line at the extent they can go to getting the information on the new product. For instance, if a company A just invented a new product, they spent millions of dollars throughout the process, and now company B wants a piece of the market. Company B doesn't want to re-invent the wheel so they pursue trying to get the necessary information on the new product to start producing it also. So does company B have the right to steal this information? Not only are they attempting to steal the product information but they are doing it in somewhat illegal ways. They go through you garbage. They use spyware to monitor your emails. They use undercover people to go into your business and gather information. They may even send a person to become employed long enough to get the product secrets. This is a huge problem with companies trying to undercut and steal from other companies. The way these people are doing this and a more indepth article can be found at a website on the internet. It also includes ways for a company to protect from industrial espionage. But even being protected, how far is a dishonest company willing to go to get your trade secrets? I just thought this was something to think about. Industrial Espionage

1 comment:

Dr. Tufte said...

-1 on Liz's post for spelling errors.

This is a fairly common practice. Game theory tells us that it exists because the potential benefits exceed the potential costs. There's a lesson there for the penalties involved in white collar crime.