Norton Personal Firewall 2000 protects consumers

Norton Personal Firewall 2000 protects consumer PC users against Internet threats and privacy intrusions
Symantec New Zealand launches the ultimate personal firewall
for all home Internet users

AUCKLAND – July 31, 2000 – Symantec New Zealand has announced Norton Personal Firewall 2000, a flexible and easy-to-use Internet security solution that protects consumer Internet users from hacking and privacy intrusions. Regardless of a user’s experience or type of Internet connection, Norton Personal Firewall 2000 provides simple, out-of-the- box security to protect from Internet threats.

Norton Personal Firewall 2000 safeguards home PC users against unauthorised connections to and from the Internet, without requiring any special configuration or complex set-up. Users are able to block connections to their PC to prevent hackers from gaining access to important files, passwords, bank account details or any other confidential data that users might have stored on home computers.

Fast Facts
Norton Personal Firewall 2000:
 Provides security for PCs and privacy for personal information;
 Controls all Internet connections to and from home computers and alerts users to attempted intrusions;
 Prevents personal data from being sent to websites without users’ knowledge;
 Blocks Java applets and ActiveX controls and cookies from unfamiliar websites;
 Protects against known and unknown Internet borne threats. “Consumers are becoming more exposed to hacking attacks and the potential loss of private information while online, especially as the number of broadband, Internet connections grow,” said Richard Batchelar, Country Manager, Symantec New Zealand. “In response to this emerging threat, Symantec has developed Norton Personal Firewall 2000 for maximum defence against hackers and as an effective tool to maintain the privacy of personal information.”

Enhanced security
Norton Personal Firewall 2000 is the only personal firewall product available that includes technology designed specifically to keep confidential data private. Users can designate personal information, such as credit card and bank account numbers, as confidential and then configure Norton Personal Firewall 2000 to protect that data from access by unsecured websites.

Norton Personal Firewall 2000 also prevents websites from downloading Java applets and ActiveX controls, either in their entirety or on a site-specific basis. Norton Personal Firewall 2000 also provides comprehensive event logs and statistics detailing intrusion attempts, the IP address of potential attackers and authorised connections. Information from the logs can be used to track the source of any attempted attacks.
Additionally, Norton Personal Firewall 2000 protects users’ anonymity while surfing the Internet by blocking ‘cookies’ and preventing websites from tracking their movements around the Internet. It also tracks and records which personal information has been sent and when cookies, email addresses, Internet borne threats and other events were blocked.

Users can choose one of the pre-configured protection settings or customise the firewall with the intuitive, step-by-step RuleAssistant. When the RuleAssistant is enabled, users are prompted for input when a computer on the Internet tries to connect to the user’s PC and when a local application is trying to access the Internet. Based on the user’s response, Norton Personal Firewall 2000 permits or blocks the network communication and can create a firewall rule that applies to all future communications automatically. The RuleAssistant allows users to easily set up firewall rules ‘as you surf’ the web.

The complete Internet security solution
Norton Personal Firewall 2000 is an integral part of Symantec’s comprehensive family of award-winning Internet Security solutions, which also includes Norton Internet Security 2000 2.0 and Norton Internet Security 2000 2.0 Family Edition, the industry’s first fully-integrated personal Internet security suite designed for home computer users.

Pricing and availability
Norton Personal Firewall 2000 is available now and retails for $134 (inc.GTS), $119 (exc. GST) available as part of Norton Internet Security 2000 2.0 and Norton Internet Security 2000 Family Edition which provides comprehensive protection against all Internet threats. Norton Internet Security 2000 is priced at $168 (inc. gst), $149 (exc. gst) and Norton Internet Security 2000 Family Edition is priced at $190 (inc. gst), $169 (exc. gst). Both products are available now from local resellers.

About Symantec
Symantec, a world leader in Internet security technology, provides a broad range of content and network security solutions to individuals and enterprises. The company is a leading provider of virus protection, risk management, Internet content and e-mail filtering, remote management and mobile code detection technologies to customers. Headquartered in Cupertino, Calif., Symantec has worldwide operations in more than 33 countries including New Zealand. Symantec is represented in New Zealand by Auckland based distributors SealCorp and Tech Pacific.

For further press information please view http://www.symantec.co.nz/
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NOTE TO EDITORS: If you would like additional information on Symantec Corporation and its products, please view the Symantec Press Center at http://www.symantec.com/PressCenter/ on Symantec's Web site. Brands and products referenced herein are the trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders. All prices noted are in US dollars and are valid only in the United States.

For further information please contact:

Richard Batchelar, Country Manager, Symantec New Zealand
Ph: 09 3095 620, Mob: 021-684-438
Email: rbatchelar@symantec.com

Nimita Morarji, Botica Conroy & Associates
Ph: 09 3033 862, Mob: 021 950058
Email: nimitam@bca.co.nz

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