Patent officers association moves SC for probe into Intellectual Property data leak

NEW DELHI: Alleging that private multinational firm, Kaizen Institute , was granted unauthorized access to the Intellectual Property Office's (IPO) internal data servers, All India Patent Officers Association has moved Supreme Court seeking CBI probe into it saying that any leakage of sensitive IP data could have devastating economic and strategic consequences for the country.

The association of class one officers said that a probe was needed to find out the responsible persons who paved the way for the private firm to access data servers.

"The association is gravely alarmed at the potential ramifications of such unauthorized access, particularly the risk of premature disclosure or exploitation of unpublished patent applications. These applications often involve cutting-edge innovations and trade secrets, some of which are of strategic significance in sectors such as pharmaceuticals, energy, and defense. The threat is exacerbated by the fact that Kaizen Institute operates in over 60 countries and services a broad spectrum of industries including pharrna, healthcare, oil and gas, chemicals, automobiles, engineering, FMCG, and textiles-domains where industrial espionage and exploitation of proprietary technologies are rampant. Leakage of sensitive IP data into such an ecosystem could have devastating economic and strategic consequences for India," the petition said.

Seeking court's intervention to order probe in the case, the association said while facilitating access to Kaizen Institute, the Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trade Marks(CGPDTM), Prof Unnat P. Pandit, simultaneously denied access to the same or similar information to senior officials in the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), including the Joint Secretary.

Relying on documents received through the Right to Information Act, publicly available reports, and email communication, the association said, "The cumulative reading of these communications reveals that Kaizen Institute was permitted to interact with and influence the functioning of statutory offices without any traceable administrative order, notification, or fonnal authorization issued either by DPIIT or the CGPDTM."

"Such unauthorized access has not only compromised the sanctity of the examination process but also suggests possible violations of the Patents Act, , and acts punishable under the Prevention of Corruption Act, and the Indian Penal Code. The petitioner has reason to believe that this access was facilitated by various individuals, including public servants occupying positions of trust, who misused their official authority to grant such privileges without oversight. This raises serious allegations of corruption, abuse of position, and conspiracy to enable the exploitation of unpublished and sensitive patent data by unauthorized entities, potentially for unlawful financial and strategic gains," the petition said.