Sure, go ahead, if that works for you. But: - It is risky for the employee. Just how risky depends on a ton of factors like the company they're leaving, the co

Sure, go ahead, if that works for you. But: - It is risky for the employee. Just how risky depends on a ton of factors like the company they're leaving, the company they're joining, what skills they have/who they are, perceived scarcity of talent, and probably how litigious managers feel that week/the phase of the moon. Most employees have far fewer lawyers and less money than, e.g., Amazon. If they come at you, odds are pretty good that even if you win, you lose. - It is risky for your new employer. Just how risky depends on ... (see above). If you (employee coming in under an NDA) don't tell them about , you are being unethical and probably breaking your employment contract, and that sort of thing at the very least looks really bad. If you do, well, at the very least, you are making the hiring decision harder. There are companies that won't mind a lawsuit for a high-value hire; perhaps you even are one. But certainly, the risk of a lawsuit over a newhire is going to make the company think about it. Oh, and if you're thinking about causing "a million dollars in damages" with passwords you shouldn't have retained because you're pissed about a noncompete, um. If you're interested in working anywhere with responsibilities more interesting that "take out that trash and dump it in the dumpster", I hope you think twice. My bottom line on this way of thinking: it probably would have been more appealing when I was in my early 20s when I had a lot less to lose and knew a lot less about the legal system.