USA Marine Corps (in Google)
3. Background. All government employees, particularly those
involved in the acquisition process, have a duty to protect
information essential to the integrity of the process. Contractors
routinely provide sensitive information to the government for
evaluation. Without the assurance that such information will be
protected and used only for the purpose intended, contractors may
be reluctant to provide such information. Similarly, the
government develops source selection-sensitive information such as
source selection plans, evaluation criteria, and cost analyses,
which are an integral part of the acquisition process. Release of
such information can result in a competitive advantage to the
recipient and significantly damage the integrity of a procurement.
a. The references set forth the responsibilities of government
employees regarding the handling of sensitive unclassified
information. Reference (a) applies to all government employees,
and provides criminal sanctions for the release of “trade secret”
information to third parties. Trade secrets include information in
which a contractor has a property right and whose ownership is a
trade advantage, which would be lost or destroyed if the information
were known by others. Typically, contractors provide such
information to the government with an expectation that it will be