Provisions on Protection of Trade Secrets
(Announced by the State Administration for Market Regulation on February 24, 2026, by Order No. 126. It shall come into effect on June 1, 2026.)
Article 1: In order to strengthen the protection of trade secrets and maintain a fair market order, in accordance with the Anti-Unfair Competition Law of the People's Republic of China (hereinafter referred to as the Anti-Unfair Competition Law), this regulation is hereby formulated.
Article 2: When obtaining, disclosing, using or allowing others to use trade secrets, business operators shall abide by the principles of voluntariness, equality, fairness and good faith, comply with laws, regulations, rules and commercial ethics, and participate in market competition fairly.
The term "operator" as used in this regulation refers to natural persons, legal entities and unincorporated organizations that engage in the production, operation or provision of goods (and services are included under this term).
Article 3: The State Administration for Market Regulation is responsible for organizing and guiding the administrative protection of trade secrets across the country.
Local market supervision departments at or above the county level are responsible for the administrative protection of trade secrets within their respective administrative regions.
Cases involving trade secrets are generally under the jurisdiction of market supervision departments at the prefectural level or above. Depending on the needs of the work, with the approval of the State Market Supervision Administration, they can also be handled by county-level market supervision departments with corresponding law enforcement capabilities.
Article 4 The market supervision department shall, through conducting publicity and interpretation, organizing special training sessions, etc., guide business operators to establish a protection system for trade secrets, enhance their awareness and capabilities of protecting trade secrets, and promote an overall improvement in the level of trade secret protection.
Encourage business operators to establish and improve a commercial secret protection management system. Based on their own industry characteristics, technical requirements, competitive advantages, etc., they should actively take effective measures to strengthen the internal control and compliance management of confidential elements, and prevent and stop acts of infringing upon commercial secrets. Encourage business operators to innovate the forms of commercial secret protection, and enhance protection through certification, evidence storage, etc.
Industry organizations should strengthen industry self-discipline by formulating industry-specific norms for protecting trade secrets and compliance guidelines, etc., to guide and regulate the operators in the industry to compete lawfully and maintain the market competition order.
Article 5 The term "trade secrets" as used in this regulation refers to technical information, business information, and other commercial information that is not known to the public, has commercial value, and has been subject to corresponding confidentiality measures by the rights holder.
Information related to technology, such as structures, raw materials, formulas, materials, samples, styles, processes, methods, data, algorithms, computer programs, codes, etc., fall under the category of technical information as defined in the first paragraph.
Information related to business operations, such as creativity, management, sales, finance, planning, samples, customer information, data, etc., fall under the category of business information as defined in the first paragraph. Among this, customer information includes the customer's name (surname and given name), address, contact details, as well as transaction habits, intentions, and contents, etc.
Article 6 The term "not being known to the public" as used in these regulations means that at the time of the alleged infringement of a trade secret, the relevant business information is not generally known or easily accessible to the relevant personnel in the relevant field.
The following situations fall under the category where commercial information becomes known to the public:
(1) This information is common knowledge or industry practice within the relevant field.
(2) This information merely covers aspects such as the size, structure, materials, and simple combinations of components of the product. Relevant personnel in the field can obtain this information directly by observing the commercially available product.
(3) This information has already been disclosed in public publications or other media.
(4) This information has been made public through public reports, exhibitions, and other means.
(5) Relevant personnel in the concerned field can obtain this information from other public sources.
The commercial information that is known to the public is sorted out, improved, and processed to form new information. If this complies with the provisions of the first paragraph, it shall be regarded as information not known to the public.
Article 7 The term "having commercial value" as used in these regulations means that the commercial information possesses actual or potential value, which can bring benefits such as increased assets, increased revenue or profit, growth in user numbers, reduction in costs and expenses, shortened research and development time, increased transaction opportunities, enhancement of business reputation or product reputation, to the rights holder.
The phased achievements formed during production and operation activities, or the failed experimental data, technical plans, etc., that comply with the provisions of the first paragraph, fall under the circumstances with commercial value.
Article 8 The term "right holders" as used in these regulations refers to the owners of trade secrets and the licensees and authorized persons who have been granted permission or authorization by the owners of trade secrets.
Article 9 The term "the rights holder takes corresponding confidentiality measures" in this regulation means that the rights holder takes reasonable confidentiality measures that are appropriate in light of the nature of the commercial secret and its carrier, as well as the commercial value of the commercial secret.
The following situations fall under the corresponding confidentiality measures taken by the rights holders:
(1) Sign a confidentiality agreement or stipulate confidentiality obligations in the contract;
(2) By establishing rules and regulations, conducting training, and providing written notifications, confidentiality requirements are imposed on employees, former employees, suppliers, customers, and visitors who have access to or can obtain the trade secrets.
(3) Prohibit or restrict access to confidential production facilities, workshops, laboratories, offices and other production and operation sites, or implement differentiated management for them;
(4) For scenarios such as remote working and cross-border collaboration, technical confidentiality measures such as permission classification, data anonymization, and operation log recording are adopted;
(5) By means of marking, classification, isolation, encryption, sealing, and limiting the scope of personnel who can have access to or obtain the commercial secrets and their carriers, the commercial secrets and their carriers shall be managed separately.
(6) For computer equipment, network devices, storage devices, etc. that can come into contact with or access commercial secrets, measures such as prohibiting or restricting their use, access, storage, and copying should be taken;
(7) Require departing employees to register, return, remove and destroy the commercial secrets they have accessed or obtained, as well as the corresponding carriers, and continue to fulfill their confidentiality obligations.
(8) Take other reasonable measures for confidentiality.
Article 10: Operators shall not obtain the proprietary information of the rights holder through theft, bribery, fraud, coercion, electronic intrusion or any other improper means.
The following situations fall under the definition of improper means as stated in this regulation:
(1) Without authorization or beyond the scope of authorization, one shall not improperly access, possess or copy any documents, items, materials, raw materials, etc. that are under the control of the rights holder and which contain trade secrets or can be derived as trade secrets.
(2) By providing material or other property-based benefits, using threats of violence, or through other means, bribing, coercing, or deceiving the employees, former employees, or other entities or individuals of the rights holder to obtain trade secrets for them;
(3) Without authorization or beyond the authorized scope, entering the digital office system, servers, email accounts, cloud storage, application accounts, etc. of the rights holder, or obtaining trade secrets through technical means such as setting malicious programs or exploiting vulnerabilities;
(4) Without authorization, beyond the scope of authorization, or after the expiration of the authorization period,擅自 downloading or transmitting the trade secrets to an electronic mailbox， cloud storage， or other network storage space or electronic device that is not under the control of the rights holder；
(5) Other improper means of obtaining the business secrets of the rights holder.
Article 11: Operators shall not disclose, use, or permit others to use the trade secrets of the rights holders obtained through improper means.
The term "disclosure" as used in this regulation refers to the act of disclosing trade secrets to a third party other than the rights holder, or making the trade secrets public, so that they become known to the general public or are readily accessible to the public.
The term "use" as defined in this regulation refers to the direct use of a trade secret, or the modification and improvement of a trade secret before its use, or the adjustment and improvement of relevant production and business activities based on a trade secret.
Article 12: Operators shall not violate their confidentiality obligations or fail to comply with the requirements of the rights holders regarding the protection of trade secrets. They shall not disclose, use, or permit others to use the trade secrets they possess.
The confidentiality obligation or the requirements of the rights holder regarding the protection of trade secrets generally include the following situations:
(1) In contracts such as labor contracts, confidentiality agreements, and sales contracts, stipulate the protection of trade secrets;
(2) Even if there is no explicit contractual agreement, based on the nature, purpose, transaction practices, and business ethics of the contract, and in accordance with the principle of good faith, one has the obligation to keep business secrets confidential.
(3) The right holder requests the relevant entities that are aware of the trade secret to keep it confidential. These entities include, but are not limited to, those who become aware of the trade secret through contractual relationships, or those who become aware of it through participation in research and development, production, inspection, certification, etc.
(4) There is no contractual agreement, but the rights holder, through internal rules and regulations or reasonable confidentiality measures, explicitly requires employees, former employees, partners, etc. to keep commercial secrets confidential.
(5) Other circumstances where there is a confidentiality obligation or where the rights holder has made relevant requests for the protection of trade secrets.
Article 13: Operators shall not incite, induce or assist others in violating the confidentiality obligations or in contravening the requirements of the rights holder regarding the protection of trade secrets, in order to obtain, disclose, use or permit others to use the trade secrets of the rights holder.
The following situations constitute acts of instigating, enticing or assisting others in infringing upon trade secrets:
(1) By explicit or implicit means, encouraging or instructing others to infringe upon trade secrets;
(2) By explicitly or implicitly inducing others to infringe upon trade secrets through material rewards or promises of positions, etc., without any legitimate justification.
(3) Knowing or being aware that others are infringing upon trade secrets, still providing them with financial, technical, or equipment-related conveniences and assistance;
(4) Other acts of inciting, enticing or assisting others in infringing upon trade secrets.
Article 14: If any natural person, legal person or unincorporated entity other than an operator engages in any of the acts stipulated in Articles 10 to 13 of this regulation, it shall be regarded as an infringement of trade secrets.
If a third party, being aware or having reason to know that the employee, former employee, partner or other entity or individual of the owner of the trade secret has committed any of the illegal acts stipulated in Articles 10 to 13 of this regulation, still acquires, discloses, uses or allows others to use such trade secret, it shall be regarded as an infringement of the trade secret.
To determine whether a third party was aware or should have been aware of the situation, various factors such as the confidentiality level of the relevant commercial information, the rationality of the acquisition channels and methods, the transaction price, the relationship between the third party and the owner of the trade secret, and industry practices should be taken into comprehensive consideration.
Article 15 The following actions generally do not constitute acts of infringing upon trade secrets:
(1) Independently discovered or developed by oneself;
(2) By disassembling, measuring, analyzing, etc. the products obtained from public sources, obtain the relevant technical information about those products;
(3) The former employees of the owner of trade secrets use the general knowledge, skills, and industry experience accumulated during their work, or the industry information that can be obtained through public channels to carry out their work;
(4) In cases where it is necessary to expose illegal or criminal activities, safeguard national security and public interests, etc., commercial secrets may be disclosed to national authorities, legally established agencies with administrative functions, and their staff members in accordance with the law.
(V) Other acts that do not constitute infringement of trade secrets.
Article 16: All organizations and individuals are encouraged, supported, and protected in their efforts to conduct social supervision over acts of infringing upon trade secrets. The market supervision department shall keep confidential the information of whistleblowers and organizations and individuals who assist in the investigation of acts of infringing upon trade secrets.
Article 17 If the rights holder believes that their trade secrets have been infringed upon, they may report the matter to the market supervision department.
When the rights holder makes a report, they should provide preliminary evidence materials demonstrating that their business information is a trade secret, as well as specific clues indicating that the trade secret has been infringed upon. The rights holder is also responsible for the authenticity of the reported content. The market supervision department, based on work needs, may require the reporter to supplement the reporting materials.
No organization or individual is allowed to fabricate false facts to falsely accuse others or engage in extortion. Nor is it permitted to abuse the right to report to disrupt market competition order and market supervision order.
Article 18 The preliminary evidence materials indicating that the commercial information of the right holder constitutes a trade secret generally include the following contents:
(1) The formation process and time of commercial information;
(2) The commercial information is not known to the public or does not fall under the circumstances specified in Article 6, Paragraph 2 of this regulation;
(3) The commercial value of business information;
(4) The confidentiality measures taken by the rights holder for the commercial information;
(5) Other evidence materials that can prove that the business information of the right holder is a trade secret.
The following clues can generally serve as specific evidence indicating that a business secret has been infringed upon:
(1) It indicates that the person suspected of infringing upon trade secrets (hereinafter referred to as the infringer) has access or opportunity to obtain clues about the trade secrets;
(2) Clues indicating that the confidentiality measures for the trade secrets have been violated by the alleged infringer through improper means;
(3) Clues indicating that the trade secrets have actually been obtained by the suspected infringer;
(4) Clues indicating that the trade secrets have been disclosed, used by the suspected infringer, or are at risk of being disclosed or used;
(5) Other clues indicating that the business secrets have been infringed upon by the suspected infringer.
Article 19: After receiving the complaint information, the market supervision department shall conduct a verification in accordance with the law and decide whether to file a case.
After verification, cases that meet the following conditions shall be filed:
(1) There is preliminary evidence indicating that acts of infringing upon trade secrets have occurred, and such actions should be subject to administrative penalties in accordance with the law.
(2) Under the jurisdiction of this department;
(3) Within the legally prescribed period for imposing administrative penalties.
Article 20: The suspected infringer, interested parties, and other relevant units or individuals shall truthfully provide the market supervision department with relevant materials or information.
There is evidence indicating that the information used by the suspected infringer is substantially the same as the trade secret claimed by the rights holder, and that the suspected infringer has the conditions to obtain the trade secret. The market supervision department can then determine that the suspected infringer has committed the act of infringing upon the trade secret. However, this determination shall be made exceptionally if there is evidence proving that the information used by the suspected infringer was obtained or used legally.
Article 21: The market supervision department and its staff have the obligation to keep confidential the commercial secrets they learn during the investigation process. They shall not illegally disclose, use, or allow others to use the commercial secrets of the rights holders.
When the market supervision department publicly discloses the administrative penalty decisions, it must not disclose any content related to trade secrets.
Article 22: The rights holders and the suspected infringers may entrust qualified appraisal institutions with legal qualifications to conduct appraisals on specific matters such as whether the rights holders' information is already known to the public, and whether the information used by the suspected infringers is substantially the same as that of the rights holders. They may also entrust individuals with specialized knowledge to issue professional opinions on these matters, and submit the relevant appraisal results or professional opinions to the market supervision department.
Article 23 When the market supervision department investigates suspected acts of infringing upon trade secrets, the following measures can be taken:
(1) Conduct inspections at the business premises suspected of infringing upon trade secrets;
(2) Inquire of the suspected infringers, interested parties, and other relevant units and individuals being investigated, requesting them to explain the relevant circumstances or provide other materials related to the investigated behavior;
(3) Query, copy and obtain the agreements, account books, vouchers, documents, records, business correspondence and other materials related to the suspected act of infringing upon trade secrets;
(4) Seize and impound the property related to the suspected act of infringing upon trade secrets;
(5) Query the bank accounts of the business operators suspected of infringing upon trade secrets.
When taking the measures stipulated in the first paragraph, a written report shall be made to the main person in charge of the market supervision department, and approval shall be obtained. When taking the measures stipulated in the fourth and fifth items of the first paragraph, a written report shall be made to the main person in charge of the market supervision department at the prefectural-level city or above, and approval shall be obtained.
The market supervision and administration departments and their staff, when conducting investigations or requesting assistance in investigations in accordance with the law, should avoid or minimize any impact on the normal business operations of the business operators.
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