18 U.S.C. § 1839 — Definitions

As used in this chapter—

(1) “Foreign instrumentality” means an agency^*, bureau, ministry, component, institution, association, or legal, commercial, or business organization^*, including a corporation, firm, or other entity, that a foreign government substantially owns, controls, sponsors, commands, manages, or dominates.

(2) “Foreign agent” means an officer, employee, proxy, servant, delegate, or representative of a foreign government.

(3) “Trade secret” means any kind of financial, business, scientific, technical, economic, or engineering information, including patterns, plans, compilations, program devices, formulas, designs, prototypes, methods, techniques, processes, procedures, programs, or codes. It may be tangible or intangible and may be stored, compiled, or recorded physically, electronically, graphically, photographically, or in writing. It is a trade secret only if—

(A) its owner took reasonable steps to keep it secret; and

(B) it has actual or potential independent economic value because it is not generally known or readily discoverable through proper means by another person who could gain economic value from its disclosure or use.

(4) “Owner,” for a trade secret, means the person or entity that holds rightful legal or equitable title to, or a license in, the trade secret.

(5) “Misappropriation” means—

(A) acquiring another person’s trade secret while knowing or having reason to know that it was acquired by improper means; or

(B) disclosing or using another person’s trade secret without express or implied consent when the person—

(i) used improper means to learn it;

(ii) when disclosing or using it, knew or had reason to know that the knowledge came from someone who used improper means, was obtained under circumstances creating a duty to keep it secret or limit its use, or came from someone who owed the person seeking relief a duty to keep it secret or limit its use; or

(iii) before materially changing position, knew or had reason to know both that it was a trade secret and that the knowledge was acquired by accident or mistake.

(6) “Improper means”—

(A) includes theft, bribery, misrepresentation, breaking or inducing a breach of a duty to keep information secret, and electronic or other espionage; but

(B) does not include reverse engineering, independent derivation, or another lawful way to acquire information.

(7) “Trademark Act of 1946” means the Act approved July 5, 1946, titled “An Act to provide for the registration and protection of trademarks used in commerce, to carry out the provisions of certain international conventions, and for other purposes,” 15 U.S.C. 1051 et seq., commonly called the Trademark Act of 1946 or the Lanham Act.