NDA & Confidentiality Policy

The purpose of this Non-Disclosure Agreement is to protect the confidential, proprietary, and sensitive information exchanged between Bioinformatics Next (the "Receiving Party") and our clients (the "Disclosing Party") in connection with the evaluation, discussion, and execution of bioinformatics research projects.

This policy applies to all engagements including but not limited to:

• NGS and sequencing data analysis projects
• Genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, and multi-omics studies
• Drug discovery and structural biology collaborations
• Manuscript writing, publication support, and academic consulting
• Custom pipeline development and software projects
• Bioinformatics consulting and advisory services

"Confidential Information" refers to any and all information or data that has or could have commercial or research value, or whose disclosure could be harmful, including but not limited to:

As the Receiving Party, Bioinformatics Next agrees to the following obligations regarding all Confidential Information received from the Disclosing Party:

• Non-disclosure: We will not disclose, share, transfer, or publish any Confidential Information to any third party without your prior written consent.
• Non-use: We will use Confidential Information solely for the purpose of delivering the agreed project services and for no other purpose whatsoever.
• Access restriction: Access to Confidential Information will be strictly limited to team members directly assigned to your project who are bound by confidentiality obligations.
• No training use: Your data will never be used to train AI models, build internal databases, or inform any work outside the scope of your project.
• No publication: We will not publish, present, or reference your data, findings, or project details in any public forum without your explicit written authorisation.
• Secure handling: All Confidential Information will be stored and transmitted using appropriate security measures including encryption and access controls.
• Prompt notification: In the event of any unauthorised disclosure or suspected breach, we will notify you promptly and take all reasonable steps to mitigate harm.

We offer a formal signed Non-Disclosure Agreement for all clients who require one. The NDA process is straightforward:

Our confidentiality obligations do not apply to information that:

• Was already in the public domain at the time of disclosure through no fault of ours
• Becomes publicly available after disclosure through no act or omission on our part
• Was independently known to us prior to disclosure, as evidenced by written records
• Was independently developed by us without reference to your Confidential Information
• Is required to be disclosed by law, regulation, or court order — in which case we will notify you in advance wherever legally permitted and cooperate to seek protective measures

To protect Confidential Information, we implement the following security measures as standard across all projects:

Our confidentiality obligations are not time-limited. Specifically:

• Obligations take effect from the moment any Confidential Information is first shared with us — even prior to a signed NDA
• Obligations remain in full force for the entire duration of the project
• Obligations survive indefinitely after project completion or termination of engagement
• For formally signed NDAs, the duration specified in the agreement applies, typically a minimum of 5 years

Confidentiality timeline:

In certain project contexts, this agreement operates on a mutual basis. As the Disclosing Party, you also agree to:

• Keep confidential any proprietary methodologies, pipeline details, or internal processes shared by Bioinformatics Next during the course of the project
• Not share, reproduce, or distribute our internal tools, workflows, or technical approaches without our written consent
• Not use any proprietary information shared by us to develop competing services or products
• Limit access to our Confidential Information within your organisation to those who need it for the purpose of the project

Both parties acknowledge that a breach of this confidentiality agreement may cause irreparable harm for which monetary compensation alone may be insufficient. Accordingly:

• Either party may seek immediate injunctive or equitable relief from a court of competent jurisdiction in the event of an actual or threatened breach
• The non-breaching party reserves all rights to pursue any other available legal remedies, including damages
• In the event of a breach by Bioinformatics Next, we will notify you promptly, take all reasonable steps to contain the breach, and cooperate fully with any investigation
• The prevailing party in any dispute shall be entitled to recover reasonable legal costs and expenses

This NDA & Confidentiality Policy is governed by the laws of England and Wales. Any disputes arising from or in connection with this agreement shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales.

Where clients are based in other jurisdictions, additional applicable data protection laws (such as GDPR, HIPAA, or local equivalents) will be observed as required. We are happy to discuss jurisdiction-specific requirements prior to project commencement.