Most public companies adopt a policy forbidding trading in company’s securities by employees, officers, and directors in periods when it is likely to possess material nonpublic information. The periods when trading is not permitted are referred to as “closed windows.” Closed windows typically start a few weeks before the end of the fiscal quarter and end shortly after the earnings announcement. Periods when trading is permitted under these policies are referred to as “open windows.” Even in an open window, no trading decisions should be made when a person actually possesses material nonpublic information.