Thomson Reuters warns staff against illegal file sharing

Such use of company computer assets violates the Code of Business Conduct and Ethics and is “a potentially terminable offense”, James Powell, executive vice president and CTO, said in a message to all employees.

“Thomson Reuters regards its intellectual property as fundamental to the value of our businesses and it’s essential that we show the same respect for other companies’ intellectual property as we would expect for our own,” he said.

Powell cited three specific references in the Code of Business Conduct and Ethics including the use of personal software on work computers or modification of Thomson Reuters-provided software; use of peer-to-peer (P2P) software to share copyrighted material; and downloading, duplicating or redistributing copyrighted material including music, movies, images or software.

Unauthorised use of P2P software could compromise the security and integrity of Thomson Reuters’ network and applications and could lead to financial and/or reputational damage, Powell added. ■