Complete Guide to Trade Secret Protection Law in South Korea – 3 Essential Requirements to Criminal Penalties<\/title><br \/>\n <meta name=\"description\" content=\"Everything about trade secret protection in one place! From non-disclosure, confidentiality management, and economic utility requirements to criminal penalties and joint ownership relations. A comprehensive practical guide provided by Atlas Legal.\"><\/p>\n<style>\n body {\n font-family: Georgia, serif;\n line-height: 1.6;\n max-width: 1000px;\n margin: 0 auto;\n padding: 20px;\n background-color: #f9f9f9;\n }\n .content-container {\n background-color: white;\n padding: 20px;\n border-radius: 8px;\n box-shadow: 0 2px 4px rgba(0,0,0,0.1);\n margin: 0;\n }\n h2 {\n font-size: 22px;\n color: #2c3e50;\n margin-top: 30px;\n margin-bottom: 10px;\n }\n h3 {\n font-size: 20px;\n color: #34495e;\n margin-top: 20px;\n margin-bottom: 10px;\n }\n p, li {\n font-size: 18px;\n color: #333;\n margin-bottom: 10px;\n margin-top: 0;\n }\n ul, ol {\n padding-left: 25px;\n margin: 10px 0;\n }\n li {\n margin-bottom: 5px;\n }\n .toc {\n background-color: #f8f9fa;\n padding: 15px;\n border-radius: 5px;\n margin-bottom: 20px;\n }\n .toc h2 {\n font-size: 20px;\n margin-top: 0;\n margin-bottom: 10px;\n }\n .toc ul {\n list-style-type: none;\n padding-left: 0;\n margin: 0;\n }\n .toc ul li {\n margin-bottom: 5px;\n }\n .toc a {\n text-decoration: none;\n color: #3498db;\n }\n .toc a:hover {\n text-decoration: underline;\n }\n br {\n display: none;\n }\n .related-links {\n margin-bottom: 20px;\n padding: 10px 15px;\n }\n @media (max-width: 768px) {\n body {\n padding: 10px;\n }\n .content-container {\n padding: 15px;\n }\n h2 {\n font-size: 18px;\n }\n h3 {\n font-size: 17px;\n }\n p, li {\n font-size: 16px;\n }\n }\n .site-container,\n .content-area,\n .entry-content {\n padding: 0;\n margin: 0;\n }\n .kb-row-container,\n .kb-column-container {\n margin: 0;\n padding: 0;\n }\n <\/style>\n<p><\/head><br \/>\n<body><\/p>\n<div class=\"content-container\">\n<div class=\"toc\">\n<h2>Table of Contents<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"#section1\">1. What is Trade Secret? Basic Concepts and Importance<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#section2\">2. Three Essential Requirements for Trade Secret Recognition<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#section3\">3. Complete Analysis of Non-Disclosure Requirements<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#section4\">4. Confidentiality Management Requirements and 2019 Amendment<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#section5\">5. Criminal Penalty System and Use of Breach of Trust<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#section6\">6. Trade Secret Joint Ownership and Practical Issues<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#section7\">7. Differences Between Unfair Competition Prevention Act and Industrial Technology Protection Act<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#section8\">8. Practical Response Strategies and Precautions<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<h2 id=\"section1\">1. What is Trade Secret? Basic Concepts and Importance<\/h2>\n<p>The value of modern corporations is no longer determined by tangible assets such as land or buildings, but by intangible assets. Particularly in the era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, the technological know-how and core information possessed by companies have become the most important assets determining competitive advantage.<\/p>\n<p>There are two main ways to protect core technologies developed by companies: securing intellectual property rights through patent applications and protection as trade secrets. The greatest appeal of trade secret protection is that it can be protected indefinitely as long as the secret is maintained.<\/p>\n<p>The Unfair Competition Prevention and Trade Secret Protection Act (Unfair Competition Prevention Act) of South Korea defines trade secrets in Article 2, Paragraph 2 as follows:<\/p>\n<p>“Information that is not publicly known, has independent economic value, and is confidentially managed, including production methods, sales methods, and other technical or business information useful for business activities”<\/p>\n<p>The scope of trade secrets is very broad. Everything from business data such as customer lists and business partner information to cutting-edge manufacturing technologies can be included. However, unlike patents, trade secrets have the characteristic that their substance and scope are difficult to clearly identify, making them an important issue in legal disputes.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"section2\">2. Three Essential Requirements for Trade Secret Recognition<\/h2>\n<p>To receive legal protection as a trade secret, all of the following three requirements must be met:<\/p>\n<h3>Non-disclosure (Not Publicly Known)<\/h3>\n<p>This means that the information is not known to the general public or an unspecified number of people.<\/p>\n<h3>Economic Utility (Independent Economic Value)<\/h3>\n<p>This means that the information holder can gain competitive advantages over competitors through the use of the information, or that considerable cost or effort is required to acquire or develop the information.<\/p>\n<h3>Confidentiality Management (Confidentially Managed)<\/h3>\n<p>This means that the information holder is taking specific and conscious management measures to maintain the confidentiality of the information.<\/p>\n<p>These three requirements are closely interrelated, and if any one of them is not met, legal protection as a trade secret cannot be obtained.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"section3\">3. Complete Analysis of Non-Disclosure Requirements<\/h2>\n<h3>Core Concept of Non-disclosure<\/h3>\n<p>Non-disclosure is directly connected to the essential characteristic of trade secrets as “competitive property.” Once information becomes publicly known, it no longer has value as a secret and is excluded from legal protection.<\/p>\n<h3>Practical Meaning of “Not Publicly Known” Status<\/h3>\n<p>“Not publicly known” means that the information is not known to an unspecified number of people through publication in media or other means, and the information cannot normally be obtained without going through the holder.<\/p>\n<p>An important point is that trade secrets do not require absolute secrecy. If relative secrecy is recognized, where the information is known only to those with confidentiality obligations in a limited manner and that limited state is maintained, the non-disclosure requirement is satisfied.<\/p>\n<h3>Relationship Between Reverse Engineering and Non-disclosure<\/h3>\n<p>When products or facilities embodying trade secrets are released to the market, the judgment of non-disclosure when third parties can technically analyze (reverse engineer) the products to obtain information becomes an important issue.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Reverse Engineerable Domain<\/strong>: Cases where reverse engineering requires special technology or advanced expertise and considerable time, making it difficult for anyone to easily identify the information<\/li>\n<li><strong>Readily Ascertainable Domain<\/strong>: Cases where the time and cost required for reverse engineering are minimal, allowing anyone to easily analyze the product and obtain trade secrets<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Non-disclosure Judgment for Combined Information<\/h3>\n<p>For information created by combining publicly known information, to be recognized as having value as combined information and non-disclosure, one of the following criteria must be met:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>When combining information is not easy for those in the relevant industry<\/li>\n<li>When the combination itself is not difficult, but the combined information exerts technical effects beyond the simple sum of individual information<\/li>\n<li>When the accumulation of combined information itself contributes to cost reduction in design and development<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h2 id=\"section4\">4. Confidentiality Management Requirements and 2019 Amendment<\/h2>\n<h3>Background of the 2019 Legal Amendment<\/h3>\n<p>In the 2019 amendment to the Unfair Competition Prevention Act, the existing phrase “maintained secret through reasonable efforts” was changed to the more active and clear expression “confidentially managed” among the requirements for recognizing trade secrets.<\/p>\n<h3>Practical Implications of Deleting “Considerable Efforts”<\/h3>\n<p>Before the amendment, trade secrets had to be maintained secret “through considerable efforts.” This made proving “considerable efforts” a key issue in litigation, and proving this had been a significant burden for trade secret holders.<\/p>\n<p>The deletion of the phrase “considerable efforts” in the amended law substantially relaxed the confidentiality management requirements for trade secrets, making it easier for companies to receive protection for their trade secrets, which has important significance.<\/p>\n<h3>Differentiated Confidentiality Management Standards by Company Size<\/h3>\n<p>When judging confidentiality management, there may be substantial differences in the required level and degree of management according to company characteristics such as large corporations and small and medium enterprises. For small and medium enterprises, even if they do not have the same level of computer security systems as large corporations, confidentiality management can be recognized if they manage secrets in ways appropriate to their company size, such as restricting access to core information and allowing only the minimum necessary employees to view it.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"section5\">5. Criminal Penalty System and Use of Breach of Trust<\/h2>\n<h3>Criminal Penalty System of the Unfair Competition Prevention Act<\/h3>\n<p>Article 18 of the Unfair Competition Prevention Act differentially punishes trade secret infringement acts as follows:<\/p>\n<p><strong>Domestic Purpose Acts<\/strong><br \/>\n Imprisonment for not more than 10 years or a fine of not more than 500 million won<\/p>\n<p><strong>Foreign Purpose Acts (Aggravated Punishment)<\/strong><br \/>\n Imprisonment for not more than 15 years or a fine of not more than 1.5 billion won<\/p>\n<p><strong>Fines Based on Property Gains<\/strong><br \/>\n When property gains from violations exceed a certain amount, fines are set within the range of 2 to 10 times the property gains.<\/p>\n<h3>Active Use of Breach of Trust<\/h3>\n<p>Since the current criminal provisions of the Unfair Competition Prevention Act have some limitations, in practice, breach of trust under criminal law is actively used for more effective criminal punishment.<\/p>\n<p>Case law states that technical information must have non-disclosure, utility, and confidentiality management to be protected as trade secrets. However, even if these requirements are not fully met and the information does not constitute a trade secret, if the information has non-disclosure and utility and constitutes an important business asset, breach of trust can be established.<\/p>\n<h3>Establishment of Complicity by Competing Companies<\/h3>\n<p>When competing companies hire experienced employees, if they are unaware that the employees are using trade secrets from their previous company, no crime is established for the hiring company.<\/p>\n<p>However, if hiring experienced employees was a means to acquire and use trade secrets from their previous company for their own business, the competing company can also be seen as actively participating in the employee’s breach of trust and may be liable as an accomplice in breach of trust.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"section6\">6. Trade Secret Joint Ownership and Practical Issues<\/h2>\n<h3>Recognition Requirements for Joint Holders<\/h3>\n<p>Related court decisions have held that if no separate agreement determines the attribution of trade secrets produced and developed through joint research by multiple entities, such trade secrets are jointly attributed to research and development entities that “substantially contributed” to the production and development process.<\/p>\n<p>“Substantial contribution” is judged by whether there was specific and substantial technical contribution such as providing source technology and manufacturing technology, presenting detailed specifications, design work, drawing creation, performance testing, suggesting improvements, and providing other experience and know-how. (Supreme Court Decision 2021Da289399, Supreme Court Decision 2023Do4058)<\/p>\n<h3>Self-Use Rights of Joint Holders<\/h3>\n<p>There is academic disagreement about whether consent from other joint holders is required when one joint holder uses trade secrets alone:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The “consent required theory” that consent is necessary<\/li>\n<li>The “consent not required theory” (or unlimited theory) that consent is not necessary<\/li>\n<li>The “compromise theory” that consent is not required within a certain range<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Recent lower court decisions mainly adopt the “compromise theory,” ruling that one joint holder of trade secrets can freely use all jointly held trade secrets within the range that does not cause loss of trade secret status. (Seoul High Court Decision 2020Na2038172, September 9, 2021)<\/p>\n<p>In Supreme Court Decision 2023Da224303 (high-speed train technical information case), the court clarified that “joint holders of trade secrets can use jointly held trade secrets without consent from other joint holders, as long as they do not disclose the trade secrets or cause loss of trade secret status, unless there is a different agreement among them.”<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"section7\">7. Differences Between Unfair Competition Prevention Act and Industrial Technology Protection Act<\/h2>\n<h3>Secrecy Requirements<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Trade Secrets<\/strong>: Must have secrecy to be protected<\/li>\n<li><strong>Industrial Technology<\/strong>: Secrecy is not an essential requirement<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Designation and Management Procedures<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Trade Secrets<\/strong>: Holders decide and manage confidentially themselves<\/li>\n<li><strong>Industrial Technology<\/strong>: Requires designation and announcement procedures by heads of central administrative agencies<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Differences in Protection Purposes<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Trade Secret Protection Law<\/strong>: Focuses on protecting private interests of individual economic entities<\/li>\n<li><strong>Industrial Technology Protection Law<\/strong>: Public interest purpose of enhancing national industrial competitiveness and preventing outflow<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Differences in Punishment Levels<\/h3>\n<p>The Industrial Technology Protection Act stipulates more severe punishments than the Trade Secret Protection Act in some cases, stemming from the difference that the Trade Secret Protection Act aims to maintain sound trading order while the Industrial Technology Protection Act aims for national security.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"section8\">8. Practical Response Strategies and Precautions<\/h2>\n<h3>Basic Principles for Trade Secret Protection<\/h3>\n<ol>\n<li><strong>Expertise-Centered Branding<\/strong>: Emphasizing expertise specialized in specific legal fields<\/li>\n<li><strong>Customer-Centered Content<\/strong>: Practical content focused on solving customer problems<\/li>\n<li><strong>Multi-Channel Strategy<\/strong>: Utilizing various channels such as blogs, social media, and videos<\/li>\n<li><strong>Consistency and Patience<\/strong>: Consistent content creation and updates<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h3>Measures to Strengthen Confidentiality Management<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Access Restriction Measures<\/strong>: Physical and electronic access restrictions to core information<\/li>\n<li><strong>Confidentiality Agreement Conclusion<\/strong>: Comprehensive NDAs with employees and business partners<\/li>\n<li><strong>Basic Security Facility Construction<\/strong>: Security facilities at levels appropriate to company size<\/li>\n<li><strong>Regular Security Education<\/strong>: Trade secret protection education for employees<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Future Prospects<\/h3>\n<p>The confidentiality management requirements for trade secrets were substantially relaxed through the 2019 legal amendment, but still require a certain level of management effort. As confidentiality management requirements are relaxed, the importance of non-disclosure judgment is expected to increase further.<\/p>\n<p>In the future, courts need to interpret confidentiality management requirements more flexibly in accordance with the amended law’s intent to effectively guarantee trade secret protection, and establish systematic and consistent legal principles in relation to breach of trust as well.<\/p>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f8f9fa; padding: 20px; border-radius: 8px; margin: 30px 0; border-left: 4px solid #3498db;\">\n<h3 style=\"margin-top: 0; margin-bottom: 15px; font-size: 20px; color: #2c3e50; font-weight: bold;\">Related Contents<\/h3>\n<div style=\"display: grid; gap: 15px;\">\n<div style=\"background-color: white; padding: 15px; border-radius: 6px; box-shadow: 0 2px 4px rgba(0,0,0,0.1); transition: transform 0.2s ease, box-shadow 0.2s ease;\">\n <a href=\"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-blog\/category\/corporate\/trade-secrets\/\"\n target=\"_blank\"\n rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"\n style=\"text-decoration: none; color: #2c3e50; display: block; font-size: 18px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 1.4;\"><br \/>\n Atlas Legal Trade Secret Blog<br \/>\n <\/a>\n <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div style=\"margin-top: 20px; padding: 15px; background-color: #e8f4fd; border-radius: 5px; border-left: 4px solid #3498db;\">\n<p style=\"margin: 0; font-size: 16px; color: #2c3e50;\"><strong>Atlas Legal<\/strong> has recently successfully handled trade secret cases related to core technology protection for numerous companies in South Korea. We are particularly recognized for our expertise in trade secret protection system construction consulting for manufacturing companies and providing legal strategies for trade secret attribution and use in joint research and development projects.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/body><br \/>\n<\/html><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Complete Guide to Trade Secret Protection Law in South Korea – 3 Essential Requirements to Criminal Penalties Table of Contents 1. What is Trade Secret? Basic Concepts and Importance 2. Three Essential Requirements for Trade Secret Recognition 3. Complete Analysis of Non-Disclosure Requirements 4. Confidentiality Management Requirements and 2019 Amendment 5. Criminal Penalty System and…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_kadence_starter_templates_imported_post":false,"_kad_post_transparent":"default","_kad_post_title":"default","_kad_post_layout":"default","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"default","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"default","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[44,43,42,34,45],"class_list":["post-1017","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-16","tag-confidentiality-management","tag-non-disclosure","tag-south-korea","tag-trade-secret-protection","tag-unfair-competition-prevention-act"],"yoast_head":"\n<title>Complete Guide to Trade Secret Protection Law in South Korea - 3 Essential Requirements to Criminal Penalties<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Everything about trade secret protection in one place! From non-disclosure, confidentiality management, and economic utility requirements to criminal penalties and joint ownership relations. A comprehensive practical guide provided by Atlas Legal.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/2025\/09\/09\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"ko_KR\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Complete Guide to Trade Secret Protection Law in South Korea - 3 Essential Requirements to Criminal Penalties\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Everything about trade secret protection in one place! From non-disclosure, confidentiality management, and economic utility requirements to criminal penalties and joint ownership relations. A comprehensive practical guide provided by Atlas Legal.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/2025\/09\/09\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Company Counseling\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-09-09T20:00:46+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"\ubc95\ubb34\ubc95\uc778 \uc544\ud2c0\ub77c\uc2a4\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"\uae00\uc4f4\uc774\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"\ubc95\ubb34\ubc95\uc778 \uc544\ud2c0\ub77c\uc2a4\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/2025\\\/09\\\/09\\\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/2025\\\/09\\\/09\\\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"\ubc95\ubb34\ubc95\uc778 \uc544\ud2c0\ub77c\uc2a4\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/184bcdecc06f89fd6c36b29781165b55\"},\"headline\":\"Complete Guide to Trade Secret Protection Law in South Korea – 3 Essential Requirements to Criminal Penalties\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-09-09T20:00:46+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/2025\\\/09\\\/09\\\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":1848,\"commentCount\":0,\"keywords\":[\"confidentiality management\",\"non-disclosure\",\"South Korea\",\"trade secret protection\",\"unfair competition prevention act\"],\"articleSection\":[\"\uae30\uc5c5\"],\"inLanguage\":\"ko-KR\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/2025\\\/09\\\/09\\\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/2025\\\/09\\\/09\\\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/2025\\\/09\\\/09\\\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\\\/\",\"name\":\"Complete Guide to Trade Secret Protection Law in South Korea - 3 Essential Requirements to Criminal Penalties\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2025-09-09T20:00:46+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/184bcdecc06f89fd6c36b29781165b55\"},\"description\":\"Everything about trade secret protection in one place! From non-disclosure, confidentiality management, and economic utility requirements to criminal penalties and joint ownership relations. A comprehensive practical guide provided by Atlas Legal.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/2025\\\/09\\\/09\\\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"ko-KR\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/2025\\\/09\\\/09\\\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/2025\\\/09\\\/09\\\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"\ud648\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Complete Guide to Trade Secret Protection Law in South Korea – 3 Essential Requirements to Criminal Penalties\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/\",\"name\":\"Company Counseling\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"ko-KR\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/184bcdecc06f89fd6c36b29781165b55\",\"name\":\"\ubc95\ubb34\ubc95\uc778 \uc544\ud2c0\ub77c\uc2a4\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"ko-KR\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/d4c25916239244225f5f853b2ddf50fdcb7ea24d63347445261fe71c707cc558?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/d4c25916239244225f5f853b2ddf50fdcb7ea24d63347445261fe71c707cc558?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/d4c25916239244225f5f853b2ddf50fdcb7ea24d63347445261fe71c707cc558?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"\ubc95\ubb34\ubc95\uc778 \uc544\ud2c0\ub77c\uc2a4\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/author\\\/prinz001\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Complete Guide to Trade Secret Protection Law in South Korea - 3 Essential Requirements to Criminal Penalties","description":"Everything about trade secret protection in one place! From non-disclosure, confidentiality management, and economic utility requirements to criminal penalties and joint ownership relations. A comprehensive practical guide provided by Atlas Legal.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/2025\/09\/09\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\/","og_locale":"ko_KR","og_type":"article","og_title":"Complete Guide to Trade Secret Protection Law in South Korea - 3 Essential Requirements to Criminal Penalties","og_description":"Everything about trade secret protection in one place! From non-disclosure, confidentiality management, and economic utility requirements to criminal penalties and joint ownership relations. A comprehensive practical guide provided by Atlas Legal.","og_url":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/2025\/09\/09\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\/","og_site_name":"Company Counseling","article_published_time":"2025-09-09T20:00:46+00:00","author":"\ubc95\ubb34\ubc95\uc778 \uc544\ud2c0\ub77c\uc2a4","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"\uae00\uc4f4\uc774":"\ubc95\ubb34\ubc95\uc778 \uc544\ud2c0\ub77c\uc2a4"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/2025\/09\/09\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/2025\/09\/09\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\/"},"author":{"name":"\ubc95\ubb34\ubc95\uc778 \uc544\ud2c0\ub77c\uc2a4","@id":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/#\/schema\/person\/184bcdecc06f89fd6c36b29781165b55"},"headline":"Complete Guide to Trade Secret Protection Law in South Korea – 3 Essential Requirements to Criminal Penalties","datePublished":"2025-09-09T20:00:46+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/2025\/09\/09\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\/"},"wordCount":1848,"commentCount":0,"keywords":["confidentiality management","non-disclosure","South Korea","trade secret protection","unfair competition prevention act"],"articleSection":["\uae30\uc5c5"],"inLanguage":"ko-KR","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/2025\/09\/09\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/2025\/09\/09\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\/","url":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/2025\/09\/09\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\/","name":"Complete Guide to Trade Secret Protection Law in South Korea - 3 Essential Requirements to Criminal Penalties","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/#website"},"datePublished":"2025-09-09T20:00:46+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/#\/schema\/person\/184bcdecc06f89fd6c36b29781165b55"},"description":"Everything about trade secret protection in one place! From non-disclosure, confidentiality management, and economic utility requirements to criminal penalties and joint ownership relations. A comprehensive practical guide provided by Atlas Legal.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/2025\/09\/09\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"ko-KR","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/2025\/09\/09\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/2025\/09\/09\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"\ud648","item":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Complete Guide to Trade Secret Protection Law in South Korea – 3 Essential Requirements to Criminal Penalties"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/#website","url":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/","name":"Company Counseling","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"ko-KR"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/#\/schema\/person\/184bcdecc06f89fd6c36b29781165b55","name":"\ubc95\ubb34\ubc95\uc778 \uc544\ud2c0\ub77c\uc2a4","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"ko-KR","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d4c25916239244225f5f853b2ddf50fdcb7ea24d63347445261fe71c707cc558?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d4c25916239244225f5f853b2ddf50fdcb7ea24d63347445261fe71c707cc558?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d4c25916239244225f5f853b2ddf50fdcb7ea24d63347445261fe71c707cc558?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"\ubc95\ubb34\ubc95\uc778 \uc544\ud2c0\ub77c\uc2a4"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/atlaw.kr"],"url":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/author\/prinz001\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1017","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1017"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1017\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1021,"href":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1017\/revisions\/1021"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1017"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1017"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1017"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}

{"id":1017,"date":"2025-09-09T20:00:46","date_gmt":"2025-09-09T20:00:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/?p=1017"},"modified":"2025-09-09T20:00:46","modified_gmt":"2025-09-09T20:00:46","slug":"complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/2025\/09\/09\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\/","title":{"rendered":"Complete Guide to Trade Secret Protection Law in South Korea – 3 Essential Requirements to Criminal Penalties"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n
\n
\n
\n
\n Complete Guide to Trade Secret Protection Law in South Korea – 3 Essential Requirements to Criminal Penalties<\/title><br \/>\n <meta name=\"description\" content=\"Everything about trade secret protection in one place! From non-disclosure, confidentiality management, and economic utility requirements to criminal penalties and joint ownership relations. A comprehensive practical guide provided by Atlas Legal.\"><\/p>\n<style>\n body {\n font-family: Georgia, serif;\n line-height: 1.6;\n max-width: 1000px;\n margin: 0 auto;\n padding: 20px;\n background-color: #f9f9f9;\n }\n .content-container {\n background-color: white;\n padding: 20px;\n border-radius: 8px;\n box-shadow: 0 2px 4px rgba(0,0,0,0.1);\n margin: 0;\n }\n h2 {\n font-size: 22px;\n color: #2c3e50;\n margin-top: 30px;\n margin-bottom: 10px;\n }\n h3 {\n font-size: 20px;\n color: #34495e;\n margin-top: 20px;\n margin-bottom: 10px;\n }\n p, li {\n font-size: 18px;\n color: #333;\n margin-bottom: 10px;\n margin-top: 0;\n }\n ul, ol {\n padding-left: 25px;\n margin: 10px 0;\n }\n li {\n margin-bottom: 5px;\n }\n .toc {\n background-color: #f8f9fa;\n padding: 15px;\n border-radius: 5px;\n margin-bottom: 20px;\n }\n .toc h2 {\n font-size: 20px;\n margin-top: 0;\n margin-bottom: 10px;\n }\n .toc ul {\n list-style-type: none;\n padding-left: 0;\n margin: 0;\n }\n .toc ul li {\n margin-bottom: 5px;\n }\n .toc a {\n text-decoration: none;\n color: #3498db;\n }\n .toc a:hover {\n text-decoration: underline;\n }\n br {\n display: none;\n }\n .related-links {\n margin-bottom: 20px;\n padding: 10px 15px;\n }\n @media (max-width: 768px) {\n body {\n padding: 10px;\n }\n .content-container {\n padding: 15px;\n }\n h2 {\n font-size: 18px;\n }\n h3 {\n font-size: 17px;\n }\n p, li {\n font-size: 16px;\n }\n }\n .site-container,\n .content-area,\n .entry-content {\n padding: 0;\n margin: 0;\n }\n .kb-row-container,\n .kb-column-container {\n margin: 0;\n padding: 0;\n }\n <\/style>\n<p><\/head><br \/>\n<body><\/p>\n<div class=\"content-container\">\n<div class=\"toc\">\n<h2>Table of Contents<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"#section1\">1. What is Trade Secret? Basic Concepts and Importance<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#section2\">2. Three Essential Requirements for Trade Secret Recognition<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#section3\">3. Complete Analysis of Non-Disclosure Requirements<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#section4\">4. Confidentiality Management Requirements and 2019 Amendment<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#section5\">5. Criminal Penalty System and Use of Breach of Trust<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#section6\">6. Trade Secret Joint Ownership and Practical Issues<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#section7\">7. Differences Between Unfair Competition Prevention Act and Industrial Technology Protection Act<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#section8\">8. Practical Response Strategies and Precautions<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<h2 id=\"section1\">1. What is Trade Secret? Basic Concepts and Importance<\/h2>\n<p>The value of modern corporations is no longer determined by tangible assets such as land or buildings, but by intangible assets. Particularly in the era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, the technological know-how and core information possessed by companies have become the most important assets determining competitive advantage.<\/p>\n<p>There are two main ways to protect core technologies developed by companies: securing intellectual property rights through patent applications and protection as trade secrets. The greatest appeal of trade secret protection is that it can be protected indefinitely as long as the secret is maintained.<\/p>\n<p>The Unfair Competition Prevention and Trade Secret Protection Act (Unfair Competition Prevention Act) of South Korea defines trade secrets in Article 2, Paragraph 2 as follows:<\/p>\n<p>“Information that is not publicly known, has independent economic value, and is confidentially managed, including production methods, sales methods, and other technical or business information useful for business activities”<\/p>\n<p>The scope of trade secrets is very broad. Everything from business data such as customer lists and business partner information to cutting-edge manufacturing technologies can be included. However, unlike patents, trade secrets have the characteristic that their substance and scope are difficult to clearly identify, making them an important issue in legal disputes.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"section2\">2. Three Essential Requirements for Trade Secret Recognition<\/h2>\n<p>To receive legal protection as a trade secret, all of the following three requirements must be met:<\/p>\n<h3>Non-disclosure (Not Publicly Known)<\/h3>\n<p>This means that the information is not known to the general public or an unspecified number of people.<\/p>\n<h3>Economic Utility (Independent Economic Value)<\/h3>\n<p>This means that the information holder can gain competitive advantages over competitors through the use of the information, or that considerable cost or effort is required to acquire or develop the information.<\/p>\n<h3>Confidentiality Management (Confidentially Managed)<\/h3>\n<p>This means that the information holder is taking specific and conscious management measures to maintain the confidentiality of the information.<\/p>\n<p>These three requirements are closely interrelated, and if any one of them is not met, legal protection as a trade secret cannot be obtained.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"section3\">3. Complete Analysis of Non-Disclosure Requirements<\/h2>\n<h3>Core Concept of Non-disclosure<\/h3>\n<p>Non-disclosure is directly connected to the essential characteristic of trade secrets as “competitive property.” Once information becomes publicly known, it no longer has value as a secret and is excluded from legal protection.<\/p>\n<h3>Practical Meaning of “Not Publicly Known” Status<\/h3>\n<p>“Not publicly known” means that the information is not known to an unspecified number of people through publication in media or other means, and the information cannot normally be obtained without going through the holder.<\/p>\n<p>An important point is that trade secrets do not require absolute secrecy. If relative secrecy is recognized, where the information is known only to those with confidentiality obligations in a limited manner and that limited state is maintained, the non-disclosure requirement is satisfied.<\/p>\n<h3>Relationship Between Reverse Engineering and Non-disclosure<\/h3>\n<p>When products or facilities embodying trade secrets are released to the market, the judgment of non-disclosure when third parties can technically analyze (reverse engineer) the products to obtain information becomes an important issue.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Reverse Engineerable Domain<\/strong>: Cases where reverse engineering requires special technology or advanced expertise and considerable time, making it difficult for anyone to easily identify the information<\/li>\n<li><strong>Readily Ascertainable Domain<\/strong>: Cases where the time and cost required for reverse engineering are minimal, allowing anyone to easily analyze the product and obtain trade secrets<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Non-disclosure Judgment for Combined Information<\/h3>\n<p>For information created by combining publicly known information, to be recognized as having value as combined information and non-disclosure, one of the following criteria must be met:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>When combining information is not easy for those in the relevant industry<\/li>\n<li>When the combination itself is not difficult, but the combined information exerts technical effects beyond the simple sum of individual information<\/li>\n<li>When the accumulation of combined information itself contributes to cost reduction in design and development<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h2 id=\"section4\">4. Confidentiality Management Requirements and 2019 Amendment<\/h2>\n<h3>Background of the 2019 Legal Amendment<\/h3>\n<p>In the 2019 amendment to the Unfair Competition Prevention Act, the existing phrase “maintained secret through reasonable efforts” was changed to the more active and clear expression “confidentially managed” among the requirements for recognizing trade secrets.<\/p>\n<h3>Practical Implications of Deleting “Considerable Efforts”<\/h3>\n<p>Before the amendment, trade secrets had to be maintained secret “through considerable efforts.” This made proving “considerable efforts” a key issue in litigation, and proving this had been a significant burden for trade secret holders.<\/p>\n<p>The deletion of the phrase “considerable efforts” in the amended law substantially relaxed the confidentiality management requirements for trade secrets, making it easier for companies to receive protection for their trade secrets, which has important significance.<\/p>\n<h3>Differentiated Confidentiality Management Standards by Company Size<\/h3>\n<p>When judging confidentiality management, there may be substantial differences in the required level and degree of management according to company characteristics such as large corporations and small and medium enterprises. For small and medium enterprises, even if they do not have the same level of computer security systems as large corporations, confidentiality management can be recognized if they manage secrets in ways appropriate to their company size, such as restricting access to core information and allowing only the minimum necessary employees to view it.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"section5\">5. Criminal Penalty System and Use of Breach of Trust<\/h2>\n<h3>Criminal Penalty System of the Unfair Competition Prevention Act<\/h3>\n<p>Article 18 of the Unfair Competition Prevention Act differentially punishes trade secret infringement acts as follows:<\/p>\n<p><strong>Domestic Purpose Acts<\/strong><br \/>\n Imprisonment for not more than 10 years or a fine of not more than 500 million won<\/p>\n<p><strong>Foreign Purpose Acts (Aggravated Punishment)<\/strong><br \/>\n Imprisonment for not more than 15 years or a fine of not more than 1.5 billion won<\/p>\n<p><strong>Fines Based on Property Gains<\/strong><br \/>\n When property gains from violations exceed a certain amount, fines are set within the range of 2 to 10 times the property gains.<\/p>\n<h3>Active Use of Breach of Trust<\/h3>\n<p>Since the current criminal provisions of the Unfair Competition Prevention Act have some limitations, in practice, breach of trust under criminal law is actively used for more effective criminal punishment.<\/p>\n<p>Case law states that technical information must have non-disclosure, utility, and confidentiality management to be protected as trade secrets. However, even if these requirements are not fully met and the information does not constitute a trade secret, if the information has non-disclosure and utility and constitutes an important business asset, breach of trust can be established.<\/p>\n<h3>Establishment of Complicity by Competing Companies<\/h3>\n<p>When competing companies hire experienced employees, if they are unaware that the employees are using trade secrets from their previous company, no crime is established for the hiring company.<\/p>\n<p>However, if hiring experienced employees was a means to acquire and use trade secrets from their previous company for their own business, the competing company can also be seen as actively participating in the employee’s breach of trust and may be liable as an accomplice in breach of trust.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"section6\">6. Trade Secret Joint Ownership and Practical Issues<\/h2>\n<h3>Recognition Requirements for Joint Holders<\/h3>\n<p>Related court decisions have held that if no separate agreement determines the attribution of trade secrets produced and developed through joint research by multiple entities, such trade secrets are jointly attributed to research and development entities that “substantially contributed” to the production and development process.<\/p>\n<p>“Substantial contribution” is judged by whether there was specific and substantial technical contribution such as providing source technology and manufacturing technology, presenting detailed specifications, design work, drawing creation, performance testing, suggesting improvements, and providing other experience and know-how. (Supreme Court Decision 2021Da289399, Supreme Court Decision 2023Do4058)<\/p>\n<h3>Self-Use Rights of Joint Holders<\/h3>\n<p>There is academic disagreement about whether consent from other joint holders is required when one joint holder uses trade secrets alone:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The “consent required theory” that consent is necessary<\/li>\n<li>The “consent not required theory” (or unlimited theory) that consent is not necessary<\/li>\n<li>The “compromise theory” that consent is not required within a certain range<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Recent lower court decisions mainly adopt the “compromise theory,” ruling that one joint holder of trade secrets can freely use all jointly held trade secrets within the range that does not cause loss of trade secret status. (Seoul High Court Decision 2020Na2038172, September 9, 2021)<\/p>\n<p>In Supreme Court Decision 2023Da224303 (high-speed train technical information case), the court clarified that “joint holders of trade secrets can use jointly held trade secrets without consent from other joint holders, as long as they do not disclose the trade secrets or cause loss of trade secret status, unless there is a different agreement among them.”<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"section7\">7. Differences Between Unfair Competition Prevention Act and Industrial Technology Protection Act<\/h2>\n<h3>Secrecy Requirements<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Trade Secrets<\/strong>: Must have secrecy to be protected<\/li>\n<li><strong>Industrial Technology<\/strong>: Secrecy is not an essential requirement<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Designation and Management Procedures<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Trade Secrets<\/strong>: Holders decide and manage confidentially themselves<\/li>\n<li><strong>Industrial Technology<\/strong>: Requires designation and announcement procedures by heads of central administrative agencies<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Differences in Protection Purposes<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Trade Secret Protection Law<\/strong>: Focuses on protecting private interests of individual economic entities<\/li>\n<li><strong>Industrial Technology Protection Law<\/strong>: Public interest purpose of enhancing national industrial competitiveness and preventing outflow<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Differences in Punishment Levels<\/h3>\n<p>The Industrial Technology Protection Act stipulates more severe punishments than the Trade Secret Protection Act in some cases, stemming from the difference that the Trade Secret Protection Act aims to maintain sound trading order while the Industrial Technology Protection Act aims for national security.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"section8\">8. Practical Response Strategies and Precautions<\/h2>\n<h3>Basic Principles for Trade Secret Protection<\/h3>\n<ol>\n<li><strong>Expertise-Centered Branding<\/strong>: Emphasizing expertise specialized in specific legal fields<\/li>\n<li><strong>Customer-Centered Content<\/strong>: Practical content focused on solving customer problems<\/li>\n<li><strong>Multi-Channel Strategy<\/strong>: Utilizing various channels such as blogs, social media, and videos<\/li>\n<li><strong>Consistency and Patience<\/strong>: Consistent content creation and updates<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h3>Measures to Strengthen Confidentiality Management<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Access Restriction Measures<\/strong>: Physical and electronic access restrictions to core information<\/li>\n<li><strong>Confidentiality Agreement Conclusion<\/strong>: Comprehensive NDAs with employees and business partners<\/li>\n<li><strong>Basic Security Facility Construction<\/strong>: Security facilities at levels appropriate to company size<\/li>\n<li><strong>Regular Security Education<\/strong>: Trade secret protection education for employees<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Future Prospects<\/h3>\n<p>The confidentiality management requirements for trade secrets were substantially relaxed through the 2019 legal amendment, but still require a certain level of management effort. As confidentiality management requirements are relaxed, the importance of non-disclosure judgment is expected to increase further.<\/p>\n<p>In the future, courts need to interpret confidentiality management requirements more flexibly in accordance with the amended law’s intent to effectively guarantee trade secret protection, and establish systematic and consistent legal principles in relation to breach of trust as well.<\/p>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f8f9fa; padding: 20px; border-radius: 8px; margin: 30px 0; border-left: 4px solid #3498db;\">\n<h3 style=\"margin-top: 0; margin-bottom: 15px; font-size: 20px; color: #2c3e50; font-weight: bold;\">Related Contents<\/h3>\n<div style=\"display: grid; gap: 15px;\">\n<div style=\"background-color: white; padding: 15px; border-radius: 6px; box-shadow: 0 2px 4px rgba(0,0,0,0.1); transition: transform 0.2s ease, box-shadow 0.2s ease;\">\n <a href=\"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-blog\/category\/corporate\/trade-secrets\/\"\n target=\"_blank\"\n rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"\n style=\"text-decoration: none; color: #2c3e50; display: block; font-size: 18px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 1.4;\"><br \/>\n Atlas Legal Trade Secret Blog<br \/>\n <\/a>\n <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div style=\"margin-top: 20px; padding: 15px; background-color: #e8f4fd; border-radius: 5px; border-left: 4px solid #3498db;\">\n<p style=\"margin: 0; font-size: 16px; color: #2c3e50;\"><strong>Atlas Legal<\/strong> has recently successfully handled trade secret cases related to core technology protection for numerous companies in South Korea. We are particularly recognized for our expertise in trade secret protection system construction consulting for manufacturing companies and providing legal strategies for trade secret attribution and use in joint research and development projects.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/body><br \/>\n<\/html><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Complete Guide to Trade Secret Protection Law in South Korea – 3 Essential Requirements to Criminal Penalties Table of Contents 1. What is Trade Secret? Basic Concepts and Importance 2. Three Essential Requirements for Trade Secret Recognition 3. Complete Analysis of Non-Disclosure Requirements 4. Confidentiality Management Requirements and 2019 Amendment 5. Criminal Penalty System and…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_kadence_starter_templates_imported_post":false,"_kad_post_transparent":"default","_kad_post_title":"default","_kad_post_layout":"default","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"default","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"default","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[44,43,42,34,45],"class_list":["post-1017","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-16","tag-confidentiality-management","tag-non-disclosure","tag-south-korea","tag-trade-secret-protection","tag-unfair-competition-prevention-act"],"yoast_head":"\n<title>Complete Guide to Trade Secret Protection Law in South Korea - 3 Essential Requirements to Criminal Penalties<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Everything about trade secret protection in one place! From non-disclosure, confidentiality management, and economic utility requirements to criminal penalties and joint ownership relations. A comprehensive practical guide provided by Atlas Legal.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/2025\/09\/09\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"ko_KR\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Complete Guide to Trade Secret Protection Law in South Korea - 3 Essential Requirements to Criminal Penalties\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Everything about trade secret protection in one place! From non-disclosure, confidentiality management, and economic utility requirements to criminal penalties and joint ownership relations. A comprehensive practical guide provided by Atlas Legal.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/2025\/09\/09\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Company Counseling\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-09-09T20:00:46+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"\ubc95\ubb34\ubc95\uc778 \uc544\ud2c0\ub77c\uc2a4\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"\uae00\uc4f4\uc774\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"\ubc95\ubb34\ubc95\uc778 \uc544\ud2c0\ub77c\uc2a4\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/2025\\\/09\\\/09\\\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/2025\\\/09\\\/09\\\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"\ubc95\ubb34\ubc95\uc778 \uc544\ud2c0\ub77c\uc2a4\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/184bcdecc06f89fd6c36b29781165b55\"},\"headline\":\"Complete Guide to Trade Secret Protection Law in South Korea – 3 Essential Requirements to Criminal Penalties\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-09-09T20:00:46+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/2025\\\/09\\\/09\\\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":1848,\"commentCount\":0,\"keywords\":[\"confidentiality management\",\"non-disclosure\",\"South Korea\",\"trade secret protection\",\"unfair competition prevention act\"],\"articleSection\":[\"\uae30\uc5c5\"],\"inLanguage\":\"ko-KR\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/2025\\\/09\\\/09\\\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/2025\\\/09\\\/09\\\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/2025\\\/09\\\/09\\\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\\\/\",\"name\":\"Complete Guide to Trade Secret Protection Law in South Korea - 3 Essential Requirements to Criminal Penalties\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2025-09-09T20:00:46+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/184bcdecc06f89fd6c36b29781165b55\"},\"description\":\"Everything about trade secret protection in one place! From non-disclosure, confidentiality management, and economic utility requirements to criminal penalties and joint ownership relations. A comprehensive practical guide provided by Atlas Legal.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/2025\\\/09\\\/09\\\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"ko-KR\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/2025\\\/09\\\/09\\\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/2025\\\/09\\\/09\\\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"\ud648\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Complete Guide to Trade Secret Protection Law in South Korea – 3 Essential Requirements to Criminal Penalties\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/\",\"name\":\"Company Counseling\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"ko-KR\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/184bcdecc06f89fd6c36b29781165b55\",\"name\":\"\ubc95\ubb34\ubc95\uc778 \uc544\ud2c0\ub77c\uc2a4\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"ko-KR\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/d4c25916239244225f5f853b2ddf50fdcb7ea24d63347445261fe71c707cc558?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/d4c25916239244225f5f853b2ddf50fdcb7ea24d63347445261fe71c707cc558?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/d4c25916239244225f5f853b2ddf50fdcb7ea24d63347445261fe71c707cc558?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"\ubc95\ubb34\ubc95\uc778 \uc544\ud2c0\ub77c\uc2a4\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/atlaw.kr\\\/en-company\\\/author\\\/prinz001\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Complete Guide to Trade Secret Protection Law in South Korea - 3 Essential Requirements to Criminal Penalties","description":"Everything about trade secret protection in one place! From non-disclosure, confidentiality management, and economic utility requirements to criminal penalties and joint ownership relations. A comprehensive practical guide provided by Atlas Legal.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/2025\/09\/09\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\/","og_locale":"ko_KR","og_type":"article","og_title":"Complete Guide to Trade Secret Protection Law in South Korea - 3 Essential Requirements to Criminal Penalties","og_description":"Everything about trade secret protection in one place! From non-disclosure, confidentiality management, and economic utility requirements to criminal penalties and joint ownership relations. A comprehensive practical guide provided by Atlas Legal.","og_url":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/2025\/09\/09\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\/","og_site_name":"Company Counseling","article_published_time":"2025-09-09T20:00:46+00:00","author":"\ubc95\ubb34\ubc95\uc778 \uc544\ud2c0\ub77c\uc2a4","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"\uae00\uc4f4\uc774":"\ubc95\ubb34\ubc95\uc778 \uc544\ud2c0\ub77c\uc2a4"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/2025\/09\/09\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/2025\/09\/09\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\/"},"author":{"name":"\ubc95\ubb34\ubc95\uc778 \uc544\ud2c0\ub77c\uc2a4","@id":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/#\/schema\/person\/184bcdecc06f89fd6c36b29781165b55"},"headline":"Complete Guide to Trade Secret Protection Law in South Korea – 3 Essential Requirements to Criminal Penalties","datePublished":"2025-09-09T20:00:46+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/2025\/09\/09\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\/"},"wordCount":1848,"commentCount":0,"keywords":["confidentiality management","non-disclosure","South Korea","trade secret protection","unfair competition prevention act"],"articleSection":["\uae30\uc5c5"],"inLanguage":"ko-KR","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/2025\/09\/09\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/2025\/09\/09\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\/","url":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/2025\/09\/09\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\/","name":"Complete Guide to Trade Secret Protection Law in South Korea - 3 Essential Requirements to Criminal Penalties","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/#website"},"datePublished":"2025-09-09T20:00:46+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/#\/schema\/person\/184bcdecc06f89fd6c36b29781165b55"},"description":"Everything about trade secret protection in one place! From non-disclosure, confidentiality management, and economic utility requirements to criminal penalties and joint ownership relations. A comprehensive practical guide provided by Atlas Legal.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/2025\/09\/09\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"ko-KR","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/2025\/09\/09\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/2025\/09\/09\/complete-guide-to-trade-secret-protection-law-in-south-korea-3-essential-requirements-to-criminal-penalties\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"\ud648","item":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Complete Guide to Trade Secret Protection Law in South Korea – 3 Essential Requirements to Criminal Penalties"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/#website","url":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/","name":"Company Counseling","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"ko-KR"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/#\/schema\/person\/184bcdecc06f89fd6c36b29781165b55","name":"\ubc95\ubb34\ubc95\uc778 \uc544\ud2c0\ub77c\uc2a4","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"ko-KR","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d4c25916239244225f5f853b2ddf50fdcb7ea24d63347445261fe71c707cc558?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d4c25916239244225f5f853b2ddf50fdcb7ea24d63347445261fe71c707cc558?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d4c25916239244225f5f853b2ddf50fdcb7ea24d63347445261fe71c707cc558?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"\ubc95\ubb34\ubc95\uc778 \uc544\ud2c0\ub77c\uc2a4"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/atlaw.kr"],"url":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/author\/prinz001\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1017","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1017"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1017\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1021,"href":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1017\/revisions\/1021"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1017"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1017"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atlaw.kr\/en-company\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1017"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}