Confidential information, and the responsible management of it, is vital to our success. Protecting it protects our competitive advantage in the marketplace, so it’s important to know the kinds of information considered confidential and the ways to keep it safe.
An incident involving confidential information is serious. If we’re ever unsure about whether information is confidential, we ask, and until we know for sure, we treat it as though it is.
Know what's confidential.
Confidential information is nonpublic information about FIS and other third parties. It includes:
- Intellectual property
- Personal information of clients, colleagues, and third parties
- Business and marketing plans and client lists
- Business records, financial forecasts, and pricing data
Intellectual property includes: inventions, improvements, ideas, information, data, software, models and programs together with the related materials, documentation, patents, trademarks, trade secrets, know-how, copyrights, and all other related rights.
Keep it confidential.
We follow our policies and procedures to lock down confidential information. Our policies address safeguards such as:
- Labeling it properly
- Using it only as needed for your work at FIS
- Sharing it only with those who are authorized to see it and have a legitimate business need for it
- Making sure anyone outside of FIS has a signed nondisclosure agreement in place before sharing it
- Never discussing or displaying confidential information in public places (such as elevators, restaurants, and public transportation)
Use your voice.
If you suspect that confidential information has been compromised, or mismanaged in any way, report it immediately to your manager, the Privacy Office, or the Ethics Office.
Additional Resources Available:
Acceptable Use Policy
Data Protection Policy
Information Classification Policy
Records Management Policy
Records Retention and Management Standard
Records Retention Schedule
Intellectual property includes: inventions, improvements, ideas, information, data, software, models and programs together with the related materials, documentation, patents, trademarks, trade secrets, know-how, copyrights, and all other related rights.
Our Core Values In Action
Q: One of my colleagues used to work for a competitor and offered to tell me about some new services being developed by their former employer. Is that OK?
A: No, it’s not. It's OK to share general knowledge and skills learned from an old job. But new product or service ideas (including but not limited to data, documentation, ideas, together with the related materials – called “work product”) would be confidential, and your new colleague has a responsibility to protect that information – just as you would have a responsibility to protect our confidential information should you ever leave FIS.
