This awareness module concerns protecting intellectual property through copyright, patents, trademarks and designs within the broader business context of information risk, security, compliance and ethics.
 
It could be argued that Intellectual Property is simply information, hence identifying and managing the associated risks and controls is very much on-topic for information security awareness purposes.  However, Intellectual Property Rights are a particular set of controls addressing specific risks relating primarily to corporate IP, not information in general.
 
Learning objectives
Describe the terms/concepts and the business challenges in both protecting and exploiting an organization’s IP (valuable information such as its inventions and brands);
Expand on the associated information risks and controls, including IPR and compliance aspects, plus ethics;
Remind managers of the need to register trademarks and inventions to gain full legal protection, and to enforce the organization’s IPR proactively as appropriate;
Motivate workers to respect third parties’ IPR, and to expect third parties to respect the organization’s IPR.
 
What are your organization’s business goals and challenges in relation to IP and IPR?  Is there anything specific your awareness program ought to cover, or is this more of a general interest topic?  Have there been any significant noncompliance incidents, perhaps, that make it especially pertinent?  Are there particular awareness messages or themes you want to put across? What about your audiences: who within the organization has a particular interest in IP and IPR?