A trade secret consists of valuable, non-public information such as formulas, patterns, compilations, programs, devices, methods, techniques, or processes. Trade secrets must hold independent economic value due to its confidentiality and is not easily ascertainable by others who could profit from its disclosure or use and reasonable efforts by the owner must made to keep this information secret.

Trade secret laws primarily guard against improper acquisition rather than the information itself. Therefore, acquiring the same information through legitimate means like reverse engineering or independent development is typically permissible.