Outsourced developers steal your start-up's idea and code - how to prevent this

[abl]

There are a few stories that anecdote such occurrences, take Zuckerberg vs. uConnect for example.

We thought about breaking up the development functions into separate chunks and spreading them out between different developers to minimize the chance of this happening, but it seems this would be an arduous task, and in the end, all the functions would not be integrated well, and the developers will still have a pretty good idea of what's being developed.

For anyone who has resorted to outsourcing their software development, how did you ensure the developers don't run off with the code and launch a copy of your site after getting paid?

[gaius]

If your code is key to what you're doing, then you should develop it in-house.

If it's not, then stealing the code won't give your competitor any particular advantage.

[coglethorpe]

I'm not a lawyer, but I guess if someone is serious about developing a business, they could have developers they hire sign NDAs/non-competes and whatever other documents could give them legal recourse if someone pulls a Facebook.

The thing that happened with uConnect, I assume is that it was a very informal, spoken relationship, which gave Zuckerberg the ability to do his own thing.

[abl → coglethorpe]

We were thinking of hiring off-shore developers. Our concern is that even if we make them sign NDA's and an employment contract, it will be difficult and costly to enforce and to gain back any payments for damages, if they break the contract.

[noodle → abl]

dont hire offshore. if you're considering hiring offshore because of the cost, the simple truth (which is backed up by studies on the topic) is that you get what you pay for. you'd be better off trying to find someone here who will work for you, possibly for equity if your budget is tight.

[kevTheDev]

you could do some kind of equity deal / revenue share with them, thus incentivizing them to stay with you rather than do their own thing

[noodle]

get yourself an iron-clad employment contract with some loose non-compete and non-disclosure clauses.

basically, let them know that they're signing it to ensure the safety of your code, and there won't be any problems as long as they don't steal code.