What measures must a Crawlspace Medic franchisee take to prevent unauthorized access to the Manual?
Crawlspace_Medic Franchise · 2024 FDDAnswer from 2024 FDD Document
Franchisee shall, prior to disclosure, fully train and inform its employees on all the restrictions, terms and conditions under which it is permitted to use Franchisor's intellectual, proprietary and confidential information; and shall ensure its employees'' compliance with such restrictions, terms and conditions.
Franchisee, Franchisee's Principals, and any person working with Franchisee shall agree not, at any time to use, copy, duplicate, record or otherwise reproduce these materials, in whole or in part, or otherwise make the same available to any person other than those authorized above, without Franchisor's prior written consent.
- 19.1.3.
The Manual, written directives, and other materials and any other confidential communications provided or approved by Franchisor shall at all time remain the sole property of Franchisor.
Franchisee shall maintain the Manual and all Franchisor's confidential and proprietary materials at all times in a safe and secure location, shall take all reasonable measures to prevent unauthorized access thereto, whether any attempted unauthorized access takes the form of physical access or access via computer or telecommunications networks or otherwise, and shall report the theft or loss of the Manual, or any portion thereof, immediately to Franchisor.
At a minimum, Franchisee shall, in the case of computer and
telecommunications networks, use the latest available firewall, encryption and similar technology to prevent unauthorized access. Franchisee shall delete all electronic copies, and return and cease using any physical copy of the Manual and other confidential and proprietary materials to Franchisor immediately upon request or upon transfer, termination or expiration of this Agreement.
Source: Item 22 — CONTRACTS (FDD page 42)
What This Means (2024 FDD)
According to the 2024 Crawlspace Medic FDD, franchisees must take several measures to protect the confidentiality of the operations manual and other proprietary materials. Franchisees are required to keep the manual in a safe and secure location and take all reasonable steps to prevent unauthorized access, whether physical or via computer networks.
Specifically, Crawlspace Medic requires franchisees to implement up-to-date security measures on their computer and telecommunications networks, such as firewalls and encryption. This is to prevent unauthorized access to electronic copies of the manual. Franchisees must also report any theft or loss of the manual (or any part of it) to Crawlspace Medic immediately.
Upon request, or at the end of the franchise agreement, franchisees must delete all electronic copies and return any physical copies of the manual and other confidential materials to Crawlspace Medic. Franchisees must also train their employees on the restrictions and terms of use for the confidential information and ensure their compliance. Employees and anyone working with the franchisee must agree not to copy or reproduce the materials or make them available to unauthorized individuals without Crawlspace Medic's prior written consent.