7. | Confidentiality. Executive recognizes that during the course of her employment, she will be exposed to information or ideas of a confidential or proprietary nature that pertain to Company’s business, financial, legal, marketing, administrative, personnel, technical or other functions or which constitute trade secrets (including, without limitation, specifications, designs, plans, drawings, software, data, prototypes, the identity of sources and markets, marketing information and strategies, business and financial plans and strategies, methods of doing business, data processing and technical systems, programs and practices, customers and users and their needs, sales history, financial health or material non-public information as defined under federal securities law) (collectively “Confidential Information”). Confidential Information also includes such information of third parties that has been provided to Company in confidence. All such information is deemed “confidential” or “proprietary” whether or not it is so marked. Information will not be considered Confidential Information to the extent that it is or becomes generally available to the public other than through any breach of this Agreement by or at the discretion of Executive. Nothing in this Section will prohibit the use or disclosure by Executive of knowledge that is in general use in the industry or general business knowledge, was known to her prior to her service to the Company or which enters the public domain other than through any breach of this Agreement by or at the discretion of Executive. Executive may also disclose such information if required by court order or applicable law provided that she (a) uses her reasonable best efforts to give the Company written notice as far in advance as is practicable to allow the Company to seek a protective order or other appropriate remedy (except to the extent that her compliance with the foregoing would cause her to violate a court order or other legal requirement), (b) discloses only such information as Executive believes in good faith to be required by law, and (c) uses her reasonable best efforts (at the Company’s expense) to obtain confidential treatment for any Confidential Information so disclosed. During Executive’s employment and for so long as the Confidential Information remains confidential or proprietary thereafter, she shall hold Confidential Information in confidence, shall use it only in connection with the performance of her duties on behalf of the Company, shall restrict its disclosure to those directors, employees or independent contractors of the Company with a need to know such Confidential Information, and shall not disclose, copy or use Confidential Information for the benefit of anyone other than the Company without the Company’s prior written consent. However, nothing in this Agreement shall prohibit the Executive from reporting possible violations of law to any governmental agency or entity in accordance with applicable whistleblower protection provisions including, without limitation, the rules promulgated under Section 21F of the Exchange Act or Section 806 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, or require the Executive to notify the Company (or obtain its prior approval) of any such reporting. Executive shall, upon Company’s request or her termination of employment, return to the Company and/or certify in a form satisfactory to the Company the destruction of any and all written documents containing Confidential Information in her possession, custody or control. For the avoidance of doubt, Executive shall not retain any copy in any form of any Confidential Information following such request or termination. |