Trade secrets are defined by Vietnamese law as ‘information obtained from financial or intellectual investment activities, which have not been disclosed and are applicable in business’. A piece of information falls under the definition of a trade secret when the information:
• Has not been made public, and is not common knowledge;
• Gives its owner a business advantage;
• Remains secret because the owner takes necessary measures to protect the confidentiality of the information.
Typically trade secrets could include new products or business models, special techniques, customer and supplier lists, technical know-how, etc.
Please bear in mind that, as trade secrets are a relatively new additions to Vietnamese IP law, the Vietnamese authorities have not dealt with any infringement cases relating to trade secrets to date. Trade secrets are protected upon creation without any registration, provided that reasonable measures have been taken to keep the information secret.