ABSTRACT
The world of economically motivated espionage has changed in its choice of means and methods but not its aims. Knowledge about the competitor's next product development, their offer prices for the next tender or other sensitive data which promises competitive benefits remain a strong motivator for spying on other companies – whether under cover of competitive intelligence or as open economic or industrial espionage. Regarding the fundamental development prosaically, it can be seen that one is in the middle of the Internet revolution and are possibly still right at the beginning. A new "Clean Slate Internet" that includes all the security measurements that people are currently lacking so badly will remain a theoretical model of the academic world for the future. The only sensible reaction to the mainly determinate developments is always to stay on top of things, to actively follow technological developments, to draw the relevant conclusions for one's company, and to institute necessary technical, organisational and staff-related measures.
