Beyond the Firewall: Why Your IP's Jurisdiction Matters as Much as Its Encryption

In today’s high-stakes manufacturing landscape, intellectual property is the business. From proprietary part designs to unique manufacturing processes, your digital files are your most valuable competitive asset. As manufacturers increasingly adopt additive manufacturing to innovate and secure their supply chains, they also open a new, critical front in data security.

Most organizations focus on technical security threats like hackers, network breaches, and unauthorized access. We build defenses with firewalls, encryption, and password policies. These features are crucial.

But what about a threat you can't block with a firewall? What about a risk that isn't a breach, but a legal requirement for your vendor to surrender your data?

The Two Faces of Risk: Unauthorized vs. Compelled Access

There are two distinct types of security risk, and most manufacturers are only focused on the first.

1. Unauthorized Access: This is the threat everyone knows. A hacker or malicious actor attempts to breach your defenses to steal, copy, or ransom your data. A strong security product with encrypted data, secure printers, and regular patches is designed to stop this.
2. Compelled Access: This is the business and geopolitical risk. It's the threat that a foreign government, under its own national laws, can legally compel a technology provider based in its jurisdiction to hand over customer data. No hacking is required. The provider is legally obligated to comply.

This second risk is no longer hypothetical. The U.S. government is actively highlighting these dangers, with reports like the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026 (S. Rept. 119-39) underscoring the serious risks of integrating technologies from China, Iran, North Korea, or Russia into sensitive supply chains.

We’ve seen high-profile cases where cutting-edge technology developed in the U.S. was allegedly siphoned to new, foreign-based entities, despite government agreements intended to "wall off" the operations. These contractual firewalls proved ineffective against deep state-level influence.

For any serious manufacturing or government entity, the question becomes: Is your technology partner only protecting you from hackers, or are they also structurally and legally capable of protecting you from foreign government overreach?

A Secure Program, Not Just a Secure Product

At Markforged, we believe security isn't a feature list. It's a foundational, enterprise-grade program. It’s a commitment to protecting your high-value IP from all threats, both unauthorized and compelled.

This programmatic approach is why Markforged was the first in our industry to achieve ISO 27001 certification back in 2019, and we’ve maintained it ever since. This framework governs our entire ecosystem, including:

• People: Rigorous employee background checks and continuous security training.
• Processes: Annual disaster recovery testing and security incident response drills.
• Supply Chain: A formal Vendor Approval Board that vets suppliers before they are ever brought into our ecosystem.

Most importantly, we provide jurisdictional protection that companies based in other countries simply cannot.

Markforged is an established U.S.-based company operating in full compliance with U.S. and European regulations. This means we are legally positioned to protect your data from the state-level access risks that have become a critical geopolitical and business concern.

Your IP is Your Business. Protecting It is Ours.

When you choose a manufacturing platform, you aren't just buying a printer. You are choosing a partner and trusting them with your most valuable assets.

The choice is between a platform that is hardened against hackers and a platform plus a partner designed to provide a secure manufacturing ecosystem that protects your core intellectual property from hackers and geopolitical risk.

Your IP is too valuable to leave exposed. Learn how Markforged’s comprehensive, enterprise-grade security program protects you from every angle.

To explore our complete security framework, download the new Markforged Security White Paper today.