should corporate espionage be illegal? Is it necessarily such a bad thing if one was paid to find out information about their competitors as long as he doesn't do things like steal trade secrets, trade on prohibited non proprietary information etc.
Since everyone competes in the marketplace, what is the problem with figuring out how a company is operating if it helps businesses and individuals (i.e. if the business can be more efficient, or for individuals unlock evdience of corporate fraud, stealing, fradulent accounting practices)
I would also like to add, how does competitive intelligence work in this respect?
If an employee has signed a non-disclosure agreement as part of the conditions for his employment, then he can be held liable for breach of contract if he violates it. However, once he no longer works for the company, that agreement is null and void. There's also no guarantee that the remedial clauses in the contract will provide a sufficient incentive for the employee to not break it.
I'm not sure what you mean by "competitive intelligence". Can you explain?
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There is an origanization called the society of competitive intelligence professionals. But according to wikipedia competitive intelligence is the "action of defining, gathering, analyzing, and distributing intelligence about products, customers, competitors and any aspect of the environment needed to support executives and managers in making strategic decisions for an organization"
Could this be a broad interpretation of trying to find out information about competitors and to what extent does this affect businesses and individuals?
As long the guy doesn't aggress against property or an individual, it sounds fine. Unless, again, he breaks a contract with a property interest.
But if there is no contract, information is completely free.
People's heads would spin if they knew how, at large, corporate espionage is organized. They are slowly moving to a point where 3rd parties have everyone's info and they will sell it to each other. That way asymmetry is measured with money had.
There are insurance companies and communications companies that ARE private intelligence firms, but actually carry out their 'front company' contract obligations. Banks organized the OSS and CIA because they are the ones that need to know infrastructure conditions all around the world when making loans to corporations that are building 'there'. They pick these kinds of firms because of the sensitive nature of the information they have.
Companies steal from each other only when it is cheaper than meeting with and working with their competition. Information allows for competition. Hiding information is the opposite of liberty.