[IP Practice Online] “Overview of the revisions to the Trade Secret Management Guidelines” (METI, Attorney Naoki Kurokawa)
Article information
Article type: Lectures and videos
Category: Unfair competition law
Topics: Patent corrections, Trade secrets
First published on this website: October 2, 2026
Display and classification checked: October 2, 2026 (not a re-review of the legal analysis)
[IP Practice Online] “Overview of the revisions to the Trade Secret Management Guidelines” (METI, Attorney Naoki Kurokawa)
1. Overview of the 2025 revisions
The revisions reflect changes such as widespread telework, the rise of generative AI, greater labor mobility, and recent case law.
① The role of “reasonable classification”—distinguishing secret from ordinary information—was clarified.
⇒ It is no longer treated as an absolute, independent requirement, but as one factor in assessing the level of secrecy-management measures needed.
This permits flexible arrangements suited to the company and the nature of its information. At the same time, employees must be able to objectively recognize the company's intention that the information is secret.
② The approach to access controls was elaborated in light of widespread cloud use.
For example, granting access widely within a particular department may still satisfy secrecy management if access from outside that department is restricted.
The guidelines also address the risk of generative-AI input unintentionally being used for training and losing its non-public character, leaks through the dark web, and the relationship between reverse engineering and non-publicness.
③ In light of recent decisions, usefulness is satisfied when information is used in business activities, absent exceptional circumstances such as conflict with public policy. Whether a person who improperly acquired it can make effective use of it is irrelevant.
Information readily discoverable by analyzing a product is not protected, but its non-public character may remain when substantial time or specialized technology is needed.
★ The emphasis is shifting from formal management to ensuring that secrecy is recognizable in actual circumstances.
Viewed from several angles, this attempts to maintain legal protection while accepting changes in IT environments as a given.
A critical assessment suggests that greater flexibility will also demand more sophisticated accountability from companies in proving that their management measures are objectively recognizable.
IP Practice Online, Episode 268: “Overview of the revisions to the Trade Secret Management Guidelines”
Guest: Naoki Kurokawa, Attorney/Patent Attorney, Assistant Director, Intellectual Property Policy Office, Economic and Industrial Policy Bureau, METI
Original article: https://lnkd.in/eQWjHABJ
Update and correction history
Substantive corrections and supplements are recorded separately from classification, related-article, and display maintenance.
October 2, 2026: First publication of the author's LinkedIn text. Article type, classification, issue tags, source, and consultation guide were added.
Consultation and inquiries
October 2, 2026: Updated topic tags.
