Recently, a colleague asked me to review a proposal he received in a response to a RFP (request for proposals) he had put out. As I read through it, a lot of it seemed extremely familiar to me...as though I had read it or seen it before. Long story short - the proposal was almost completely plagiarized from other sources. The company in question had basically stolen the intellectual property of other companies to try to win a contract. What would you do?
There is much debate amongst my co-workers about whether or not to inform my colleague (or let him figure it out for himself), whether or not to confront the alleged plagiarist, and whether or not to contact those who have been plagiarized. I would very much like to know your take, if you're inclined to offer it.

Wouldn't the criteria by which you review the RFP include authenticity of content? I would definitely inform the person you are performing the review for - either as part of your review response, or through direct communication with the person. I don't see that this is any different than reviewing articles for publication in professional journals. Then I would inform those who have been plagiarized. And they can decide what to do about the offender.

By asking for an opinion your friend probably had suspicions already. If you have determined beyond a shadow of a doubt about intellectual property issues. What remains is the politics of the situation and how to finesse. Perhaps consult your inhouse legal team. You may say the material is not up to standard and perhaps suggest an alternative.
Your obligation is therefore satisfied without blowback ? Or you may say, We believe that........What is the goal here ??

Nero

I would tell the colleague and give him the original versions of the plagiarized info so he can see for himself, then let him turn the question over to legal advisers.

It's possible that you will need to explain to the submitter why their RFP is problematic, especially if there's any chance that the other companies plagiarized them (unlikely, of course, but the gesture shows that you're trying to be fair).

I'm not sure about contacting the companies whose content was stolen, assuming the lawyers say this is okay. If it was already public information, there's not much they could do about it, and it could suggest on some subliminal level that your company somehow attracts lowlifes. At the same time, contacting the victims shows that your company cares about their business and about honesty, so it could encourage any budding relationship.

With copyright laws, the only one who can inforce a copyright is the holder of that copyright. Therfore if you want to take any action, you need to contact that company.

On the other hand, do you know who copies from whom.