Cognizant files trade secret lawsuit against Infosys; Infy denies allegations

TriZetto, a subsidiary of IT giant Cognizant, has filed a lawsuit against Infosys in a US federal court. The suit accuses the Bengaluru-based company of stealing trade secrets and proprietary information related to its health insurance software, according to a PTI report.

Infosys responded to the allegations by vehemently denying any wrongdoing. In a statement, the company said it was aware of the lawsuit and expressed its intention to vigorously defend its position in court, according to the report.

The lawsuit, filed in Texas federal court, alleges that Infosys unlawfully accessed data from TriZetto’s software products—Facets and QNXT—and used that information to develop and market a competing product. These software solutions are widely used by insurance companies to automate a variety of tasks.

The Cognizant lawsuit alleges that Infosys misappropriated TriZetto’s software to create “Test Cases for Facets,” effectively repackaging the data into an Infosys-branded product. The lawsuit further alleges that Infosys developed software to extract data from QNXT that contained confidential information belonging to TriZetto, PTI quoted.

The timing of the lawsuit is notable because it came shortly after Cognizant appointed former Infosys executive Rajesh Varrier as global head of operations and president and managing director, India. Varrier’s appointment followed the resignation of Rajesh Nambiar, who is set to become the next chairman of Nasscom. Additionally, Cognizant CEO Ravi Kumar S is also a former Infosys executive who spent 20 years at the company and held several executive positions, including chairman from January 2016 to October 2022.

In 2014, Cognizant Technology Solutions made headlines with its groundbreaking acquisition of Colorado-based health IT company TriZetto for $2.7 billion (approximately ₹16,400 crore) in cash. The deal marked the largest acquisition in the history of the Indian IT sector, underscoring Cognizant’s bold strategic moves. Although Cognizant is headquartered in the United States, most of its employees are based in India.