Updated Jul 05,2024

What is A Non-Disclosure Agreement?: You Need to Know

In this modern world, keeping something hidden from the public view is a complicated task. Because of modern technology, it is too hard to keep pieces of information and data secret from going to the hands of bad people. When data is the most powerful weapon in the present world, people are also inventing and applying different ways to find safety to store important data and pieces of information. We indeed need to take others’ help to live properly in this world because there is no perfect life matter. For any reason, we need to take others’ help and have to share some necessary information for the sake of the task. For example, suppose you are a freelance and you freelance graphic design services staying in your home. Recently you have got a big deal of a foreign client who has provided some images to do a significant task for them.

But there is a condition that is given by the client, you would have to sign in an NDA. If the person knows about NDA, then it is better. Otherwise, they got worried about thinking about this matter. So, NDA is an agreement or legal contract that takes part between two parties. The main purpose of this agreement is not to share or lick a single piece of information about the task that is happening between the two parties.

How Does the NDA Work?

what is a non-disclosure agreement

NDA is a great thing to resist secure information, ideas, thesis, and contents to be licked. For commercial purposes, a company should have to hire outers to do a specific project. In such cases, the company needs to share data with the employee. That information is sophisticated enough that the company wouldn’t want to get licked. This is why both of them assign an NDA for disclosing all the information that is being held of them. When two different parties agree to sign a non-disclosure agreement, they are incurred under a law that is created themselves. Under this law, those two parties abided by the rules of not sharing any information or data that is being held among them. NDA takes part for an indefinite time, so there is no risk of the signer revealing the confidential details found in the agreement at any time.

With such a type of signed agreement, both the clients and owners are given priority to not express any single piece of information about the project. If there is no signed agreement in these situations, the secret information may be leaked privately to use for evil reasons or unintentionally brought into the light. In the signed contract, the penalties for violating an NDA are listed. If anyone realizes that something related to his/her business is discovered by some anonymous person and has been shared publicly or applied in another sector. Then they should take a quick step to find who is involved in the incidents. Besides, they should hire an attorney to keep things relevant and positive on their side.

How to Write A Non-Disclosure Agreement?

If you have the skills to write an agreement or a statement before, you can easily write a suitable NDA for the purpose you think to have. but if you don’t have that, you should have to find an expert who has the experience to write a professional NDA before. Although, there are so many templates of NDA available online that you can find easily if you search. Moreover, you can categorize NDA templates as graphic design, NDA templates, business NDA templates, students' NDA templates, etc.

So, it is clear that NDA is an important matter for business owners who have to work with freelancers. Not only for business owners but also any type of commercial and even non-commercial purpose, NDA is taking a great role to keep things secret for the better.

Types of the Non-Disclosure Agreement

non-disclosure agreement

There are different types of NDA available according to the use of various terms. But they can be used anywhere if there is taking part in such types of situations as sharing intellectual property, important commercial or secret trading strategies, and information. NDA is also used to formalize collaboration between an employer and an employee. So, NDA is such a type of agreement that can be customized through the party’s requirements. But for your convenience, we are showing you some distinct NDA types. If you are looking to make one NDA for any of your purposes, you would have some idea in this regard. Generally, three types of NDA are so common and used mostly at present. They are,

Unilateral NDA

A unilateral NDA takes part between two different parties who are aggregated because of industrial, commercial, or any other task to complete together. In such situations, usually one of the parties is commonly an owner of the industry who hired another one as an employee or task manager. To get it simply, we say the party who rented another is a big party and the party who has been hired, we can say that small party. As they are aggregated to do certain jobs, the big party company discloses some information to the small party in case of properly done the work. But the big party includes that the data which they have been sharing must be secured from further dissemination. Unilateral NDA is the most common type of NDA and is used highly. From online activity to offline business plan management, NDA is the best way to go smoothly with a third party. Here are some examples of unilateral NDA.

Basic NDA

Basic NDA is used to disclose secret information, and intellectual data when they are shared with a contractor, a potential investor, or a business partner.

Business Plan NDA

This type of NDA takes part when any business organization and industry have to show a plan and strategy related to their business to a third party. there may come a situation when a business authority needs to take the help of potential investors. In such a situation, they have to share critical information with the investor to assure him of a better reflection of the investment. A business plan NDA is used to warn the investor that he can’t disclose information that is shared with him.

Business Sale NDA

When you need to discuss with consultants for your business because you can’t get the expected result through that, you have to prepare a business sale NDA before going to the chamber. You shouldn’t completely trust the consultant whom you give the most secret steps you have taken in your business. They might be asking you for some dashing information to advise what you should do. But you have to ensure that this information would not be disclosed further by the consultant.

Commercial Real Estate NDA

Commercial real estate NDA is used when a developer or landlord wants to sell or rent his house and property. The buyers who show interest to buy the land or house from the owner, all must have signed in this commercial real estate NDA.

Customer List NDA

Some companies sell their customer lists to others. they need to make a customer list NDA to keep things straight and positive for them.

NDA for Logo Design

NDA for logo design

Companies that need to do the logo design, have to take the help of a freelance logo design expert or logo design company. But they have to ensure before taking steps that the logo that will be designed for them can't be used for any other purpose without their permission. In such situations, NDA acts as a copyright holder and prevents the third party to use others' designs further.

NDA for Product Design

NDA for product design

Product manufacturers has to hire professional product design specialists to design their new product packages. It is a matter of tension for all the product manufacturers that they would have to ensure the best product packaging design to get the attention of people on their upcoming product. Besides they have to market to let people know about the product. not only that, but they also have to assure their branding design would not be used in another sector. That’s why they arrange the option to sign an NDA for the designer in this case.

NDA for Website Development

NDA for website development

Website development activities also needs to agree so that developers can’t reuse the idea that they already have applied in any website design.

NDA for Creative Work

All types of creative work that come from specifics of hard work can be protected with an NDA.

Employee Non-Disclosure Agreement

An employee non-disclosure agreement is used to provide the new employee who has recently joined an organization. This type of NDA holds information that concerns the employee not to leak any internal information of the company that would be harmful.

Bilateral NDA

Bilateral NDA is not any distinct type of NDA that we know before. Bilateral NDA takes part between two parties but this time, both parties planned to disclose information about themselves. this type of NDA is not one-way as two parties have to share their personal information. Unlike unilateral NDA, bilateral NDA has some great advantages because it provides the same chances for both parties. Each party has to consider the situation before disclosing information that the other party also has something secret about them.

Multilateral NDA

It is another general type of NDA that takes part between three or more parties who have to share important commercial and non-commercial information. NDA is used as an agreement that ensures shared information is not disclosed further. When different types of parties have to work together on the same project, they can assign a multilateral NDA to keep them transparent for further issues.

What Options Should Include in An NDA?

The NDA you would go to prepare for business purposes must include all the needed written inquiries where it will clearly be described that in which purpose the NDA is prepared. There are some common things that all the NDA included, but you have to give major priority to defining its main proposal that protects information. Although you shouldn’t present the NDA complicatedly, because complexity makes things difficult while simplicity can simply put a critical issue. Well, here we are giving those options that would help you to make an NDA of your own. you can make an NDA like,

Identification of All the Concerned Parties

The NDA must say the party’s name and profession. The party who is sharing information and the party who is receiving it in that process should be mentioned in the NDA. If it is a multilateral NDA, then it involves three or more parties in the activity. No matter the number of parties involved in the incident, NDA should have included the identity of all of them.

Description of Sensitive Information

We all know that; an NDA is being created to keep some hidden information hidden so that no one can reveal a single bit of it to harm anyone. The two (or more) parties that signed in an NDA, are contracted to work together and promised not to share any information that is held between them. so, it must be described in the NDA. A written statement of responsibility after signing in the NDA. When you have signed in the NDA, that means you have taken some responsibilities. The responsibility is displayed on the NDA that you should check before signing in the statement. Usually, NDA says that you have ensured the data remains under your care and you don’t transmit it in any situation. It also includes that, if any information is shared publicly or if it is seen in any other place, you will be responsible for that according to the law of NDA. You can’t use any shared information, not for you or any other purpose.

What Information Does NDA Exclude?

You shouldn’t include information that is too wide or irrelevant in the NDA. Some information that you have already recognized is also in this list and they are recommended to be excluded in an NDA.

Time Frame

An NDA rarely comes with a lifetime limitation. So, NDA has a specific time frame that operates the effect of the NDA until the time has ended. within that time frame, no information should be a leak by any of the parties involved in the NDA activity.

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked*