Microsoft Promotes New Trade Secrets Bill (thestack.com)

An anonymous reader writes: A Microsoft lawyer has put forward the company's conviction that the Defend Trade Secrets Act 2015, currently being debated at the United States Senate Judiciary Committee, is necessary to protect digital businesses which are now hamstrung by having to pursue trade secret infractions — a federal crime — within state law. Though the bill, revised from its failed 2014 submission, contains necessary updates for the inevitable shortcomings of existing 1979/1985 legislation regarding trade secrets, its opponents are more interested in the way it would extend ex parte seizure law to federalize private information and data in corporate plaintiffs' lawsuits and extend the possibility for closed hearings and media injunctions.

Comments

I like the gag order provision

[Anonymous Coward]

Under this bill, businesses (Microsoft) could prevent release of security holes, and possible remediation. This has already happened a few times, (Adobe?) but it would put the power of the Federal Gov't behind gagging security researchers.
Also, reverse engineer a file format? Gag order coming your way. Libre Office will wither, because the compatible formats will be changed, and reverse engineering will be prevented under "Trade Secrets".
So I totally understand why Microsoft is trying to write a bill for themselves.