The subject of non disclosure agreements has come up from time to time on FoG.  ATDC and investors do not sign NDAs.

Entrepreneurs don’t seem to like that and often try to slip non disclosures and confidentiality clauses in presentations, emails, and the like.

I recently received this email, reproduced in its entirety.  The personal information of the sender has been masked.

Please find the attached document for review purposes.

Name
Founder & Chief Executive Officer
MyStartup, Inc.
Office #: 314.159.2653

NOTICE: This e-mail message and all attachments transmitted with it contain legally privileged and/or copyrighted, confidential information intended solely for the review of the addressee. If the reader of this message is not the intended recipient – without regard of if this message were forwarded to the reader by the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that any reading, dissemination, distribution, copying, or other use of this message or its attachments is strictly prohibited without the expressed written consent of MyStartup, Inc. If you have received this message in error, please notify MyStartup, Inc. immediately by telephone  (314.159.2653) or by electronic mail info@mystartup.com and delete this message and all copies and backups thereof.

By downloading any attached materials, you agree to maintain the attachments as confidential. Therefore, they should not be disclosed or forwarded to any third parties without the expressed written consent of MyStartup, Inc. Any breaches of said confidentiality will be dealt with to the full extent of the law.

So here is an entrepreneur reaching out to me to review their business, seeking advice, and outlining legal action if I break some click through confidentiality agreement. I don’t think so. My reply in it’s entirety.

I am deleting this email. If you care to send something without the legal footer we can proceed.

It’s tempting for both experienced and first-time entrepreneurs to slide notices of confidentiality into documents.  Resist the temptation.  It shows a certain lack of sophistication that as an entrepreneur you do not want to project.