This is a really interesting question. IANAL and I am not sure a decisive answer even exists, but here is another thread to pull: Lots of traders work with sa

This is a really interesting question. IANAL and I am not sure a decisive answer even exists, but here is another thread to pull: Lots of traders work with satelite data to estimate non-disclosed info about energy and agriculture companies: https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2019/05/stock-value-satellite-images-investing/586009/ https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2019/05/stock-v... That article suggests that there is a consensus that high tech surveillance doesn't count as inside information, and I can't see why Jane's reverse engineering would be different. There's also an argument that she is publicizing the material, so depending on the order of operations maybe it is public? A separate question is what kind of trouble you might be able to get into with specific companies due to license agreements. Would love legal take on any of above as well.