Blackberry 2012 Annual Report Download - page 251

For more information on completing and submitting non-disclosure agreements, please visit http://go/nda or contact the Legal
Department at [e-mail].
Q: Marcella, a Software Architect, travels frequently for her job. While at the airport awaiting her flight, she checks her email and
returns phone calls on her pre-released BlackBerry smartphone. Her conversations are usually brief, but sometimes turn to detailed
discussions of confidential RIM protocols. Such in-depth calls are rare, and Marcella believes that no one is listening to her
conversations in the noisy terminal. As long as she limits the frequency of these calls, is it okay for Marcella to discuss confidential
matters in a public place?
A: No. Marcella has no way of confirming whether anyone is listening to her conversations, and if she is compromising confidential
RIM information. Marcella must not discuss confidential information in such situations. Additionally, while it is acceptable for
Marcella to respond to emails on her RIM-issued BlackBerry smartphone, she must be cautious when viewing sensitive materials—
especially on a pre-released device. Even though it may seem that others around us are not paying attention to our work, we never
know who may be looking or listening. In particular, pre-release devices not yet available to the public must always be used with
discretion and kept out of plain view, unless proper authorization has been received to display it in public for business purposes.
Intellectual Property Rights and Open Source Software
As RIM employees, we may have access to or even develop RIM intellectual property (IP). Our Company protects its innovation and
technology through a combination of patents, designs, copyrights, trade secrets, confidentiality procedures and contractual
arrangements. As part of the RIM Employee/Consultant Confidentiality and Intellectual Property Agreement you previously signed or
acknowledged, virtually all IP developed in the course of your employment belongs to RIM. You also have an obligation to disclose
to RIM any development of IP. This includes any IP that you develop and believe does not belong to RIM—often referred to as
“excluded developments.” For more information on when and how to disclose IP that you develop, please discuss this with any of the
resources listed in this Code.
RIM has established policies and procedures to ensure that any use of open source software within our Company occurs in a
controlled manner and with appropriately managed risk. While there may be advantages to leveraging open source software, we must
use it with care to avoid any potential negative impact to RIM’s IP rights. Careless use of open source software could have serious
consequences. If you want to use or contribute any open source software, you must obtain approval as described in the RIM Software
Group Open Source Policy.
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• There is a signed and valid non-disclosure agreement in place (be sure to forward the original signed copy of the agreement to
the NDA Mailbox via htt
p
://
g
o/nda)