Reverse Engineering

Reverse engineering refers to the process of analyzing a product to understand its design, functionality, and components. In the context of trade secrets law, it involves legally examining a product to uncover its underlying methods or technologies, which are kept confidential by their creators. This process is allowed as long as it doesn’t involve illegal means, such as breaching a contract or using counterfeit methods. If a product is publicly available, competitors might reverse engineer it to develop their own versions or improve upon it, though they must be careful not to infringe on any legal protections associated with the original product.