February 27, 2026 – The IP Press

India’s Missing Trade Secrets Law: Why We Urgently Need Protection

February 27, 2026 admin 0

In 2017, the global tech world was shaken when Waymo (Google’s self driving car unit) sued Uber for allegedly stealing confidential designs and source code […]

39 votes, 4.3 avg

934

The IP Press Quiz

Are you ready to test your IP knowledge?

An improvement over a patented invention can be protected by:

Patent of Addition

Provisional application

Divisional application

Utility model

The copyright over a photograph lasts for:

Life of author + 60 years

Life of author + 70 years

Life of author + 50 years

None of the above

The term "patent troll" was coined by the staff of which company?

Wipro

Intel

Apple

Dyson

Prior art search includes:

Non-patent literature

Patent literature

All of the above

None of the above

World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) was established in the year:

1967

1973

1980

1989

Which was the first country to have a full-fledged copyright statute?

Russia

Portugal

Spain

United Kingdom

Before the Copyright Act, 1957 (amended in 2012), which statute governed the copyright
laws in India?

Indian Copyright Act, 1918

The Copyright Act, 1920

Indian Copyright Act, 1914

The Copyright Act, 1912

The 2017 movie Raabta was alleged to be a copy of the Telugu movie:

Magadheera

Yamudiki Mogudu

Janaki Ramudu

Srivalli

An important consideration for the grant of a patent of an invention is:

Exclusivity

Prior use

Novelty

Process complexity

Who is appointed as the WIPO's next Director-General on May 8, 2020, by the consensus of the member states of the (WIPO):

Mr. Francis Gurry

Mr. Daren Tang

Mr. Arpad Bogsch

Mr. Kamil Idris

A patentee has a right to claim damages for infringement from date of:

Grant

Filing

Publication

Priority

The letters 'ND' in the term 'FRAND' for SEP licensing mean:

Non-Dependent

Non-Disclosure

Non- Discriminatory

None of the above

Slogans/ Short phrases can be protected under:

Trademark

Both copyright and trademark

None of the above

Rights conferred by registration are subject to prior user rights under the Trademark Act of 1999

True

False

Artistic

Functional

All of the above

None of the above

Rights conferred by registration are subject to prior user rights under the Trademark Act of 1999

True

False

Which of these is a geographical indication?

BMW

Champagne

Hogwarts

Amazon

Law on_____ is not codified in India.

Patents

Biodiversity

Trade Secrets

Plant Variety & Farmers Rights

Number of classes of ‘works’ under Indian Copyright Law:

Pre-grant opposition before the Indian Patent Office can be filed by:

Interested party

Any person

Controller

This sound mark belongs to whom:

Honey Singh

Pitbull

Disney

None of the above

In "quid-pro-quo", quo stands for:

Term of patent

Public Disclosure

Monopoly over patent

All of the above

The Trademark Act of 1999 provides for Absolute grounds of refusal:

Section 9

Section 11

Section 10

Section 18

Ariana Grande faced Copyright Infringement lawsuit in January 2020 for which of her song?

Rain on me

7 Rings

God is a woman

Boyfriend

The minimum term of patent protection required as per TRIPS is:

25 years

20 years

22 years

19 years

The popular symbol for copyright ‘©’ originated in which country?

France

Germany

USA

The design should be___under the Indian Design Act, 2000

New or original

Inventive

Distinctive

All of the above

Exceptions to copyright infringement in India also referred to as:

Fair use

Fair dealing

Fair utility

Fair work

Can sand-sculptures be copyrighted?

yes

May be

No idea

The first legislation in India relating to patents was enacted in:

2005

1999

1911

1856

The letters ‘FR’ in the term ‘FRAND’ for SEP licensing stands for:

Flexible and Reasonable

Friendly and Reliable

Fair and Reasonable

None of the above

Which Oscar winning movie was sued for copyright infringement?

The Shape of Water

Gravity

12 Years a Slave

All of the above

'IPC' in relation to Patents means:

International Panel Code

International Postal Code

International Patent Classification

Indian Patent Classification

Taylor Swift was sued for copyright infringement for which of her song?

Lover

Love story

Shake it off

Blank Space

A "3-D shape" of a product can be protected under:

Trademark

Design

All of the above

Beyonce and Jay Z were recently sued for copyright infringement for which of their song?

Drunk in Love

Black Effect

Deja Vu

The Central Government reviews the Secrecy directions under Indian patent act at the intervals of:

3 months

6 months

12 months

18 months

Can tattoos be copyrighted in India?

Hint: Did you know Shahrukh Khan’s tattoo in Don2 was copyrighted?

Yes

Maybe

Economic rights to performers for their performances fixed in audio-visual fixations were given in which international agreement?

Berne Convention

Beijing Treaty

Marrakesh Treaty

WIPO Copyright Treaty

The Indian Trademark Act of 1999 provides for Absolute grounds of refusal:

Section 9

Section 11

Section 8

Section 10

Which of the following is not patentable under the Patents Act of 1970?

Method of Gambling

Nuclear Bomb

Plant Variety

All of the above

India is a member of:

Paris Convention

Patent Cooperation Treaty

TRIPS

All of the above

Economic Rights under the Indian Copyright Act of 1957 are enumerated under:

Section 13

Section 17

Section 18

Section 14

Can Disney sue a cakemaker for making an “Elsa” inspired cake?

Yes

May be

I don't know

"Independent claim" is a term associated with:

Trademark

Patents

All of the above

What does a trademark protect?

Technology

Name, Brand or Logo

Confidential information

None of the above

The time limit for filing PCT National phase application in India is:

A request for Foreign Filing License shall be disposed of by the Indian patent office within:

30 days

21 days

20 days

31 days

'Prior art' in patent law includes

Prior publication

Prior Use

Prior Knowledge

All of the above

What is the period of protection of copyright granted in USA and UK?

Lifetime of author

Lifetime of author + 50 years

Lifetime of author + 70 years

Lifetime of author +60 years

Trade-secret is protected in India by:

Common Law

Law of contracts

The Uniform Trade Secrets Act ("UTSA")

Both Common Law and Law of contracts

The Protection of Plant Variety and Farmers Right Act, 2001 (PPVFR Act) received the assent of President on:

2 January 2001

15 January 2001

30 October 2001

30 November 2001

Singer Adele was sued for copyright infringement of which of her song?

Hello

Million Years Ago

Someone Like You

Daydreamer

"Computer program per se" is protectable under:

Trademark

Patents

None of the above

Your score is

Please rate this quiz

The IP Press

From the pens of IPHolics

Day: February 27, 2026

India’s Missing Trade Secrets Law: Why We Urgently Need Protection