Mathew PaquetChecklist · 4 min read
The Three Doors Exit Checklist
Know which few things are really secret, then close the three ways they leave when people do: the interview, the device and access, and AI accounts.
Under the federal trade secret law, information only counts if two things are true. It's worth something because other people don't know it. And you took reasonable measures to keep it secret. Not perfect measures. Reasonable ones.
If your pricing sheet sits in a shared folder the whole company and three contractors can open, a court can ask what you actually did to protect it. So start with the few things that really are secret.
Where it lives: [FOLDER OR APP]
Who can open it today: [NAMES OR GROUPS]
Who needs to: [NAMES]
Marked confidential: [YES / NO]
Apple alleges candidates were asked to bring actual Apple parts to their interviews, for "show and tell." On October 13, 2026, the judge ordered the hiring company to hand over its interview checklists, guides, scripts and presentations within fourteen days. You're not only the company people leave. You're also the company they join.
employers: no files, devices, parts, code names or confidential details.
We want to hear about your skills, judgment and experience.
And write your interview guides as if a judge will read them. In a lawsuit, one might. What's in someone's head is theirs to use. Files and devices are not.
The risky moment comes before the last day. The security company Cyberhaven tracked about 1.4 million workers in 2022: incidents of company data leaving almost doubled in the two weeks before someone gave notice. Usually nobody owns the last step, and the last day is two weeks away.
Why the logs first. In Apple's case, the forensic copies of devices are among the first things the judge ordered handed over.
Apple alleges an engineer used a confidential power converter schematic at his new job to train an AI agent. Again, that's alleged. But the file didn't need to leave on a USB stick. It went into a system that learned from it.
None of this is legal advice. But under the federal law, agreements about confidential information are supposed to include a notice about whistleblower immunity. Without it, a company can lose the right to extra damages and legal fees against that employee. Ask your lawyer whether yours has it.
Start here. When someone gives notice at your company, how long do they still have access? Hours, days, or you don't know? Find out on the next resignation.
You can't stop people leaving. You can decide what leaves with them, and be able to prove it.
Sources
Mathew's LibraryLibrary card
Keep reading free with your library card
One email opens this checklist and all 3 resources in Mathew's library. No account, no password.
List the four or five things that are really secret at your company, and check who can open each one today.
Saving works best in your phone's browser. A copy is also in your inbox.