Verizon Makes Online Security Easy for Everyone

NEW YORK - During October, national Cyber Security Awareness Month, Americans should take special care to make sure their computers are safe from threats such as viruses, spyware and hackers.  And Verizon, a leading provider of broadband services, is making it easy for all computer users to get the protection they need.

Verizon is offering all users, regardless of their current Internet service provider, online access to the company's comprehensive Internet security suite through the Verizon portal at http://www.verizon.net/onlinesecurity.

Verizon Internet Security Suite is free for the first month and then costs $4.99 a month for up to three PCs. The service updates every three hours and is backed by free 24 x 7 technical support. Thorough, fast and easy to use, Verizon's security suite does all the work.  Users don't have to remember to check for viruses or spyware or worry about what their children are viewing on the Internet. 

"As the volume and complexity of assaults on PCs and personal information grow, so too does the need for security services that adapt and proactively protect against these attacks," said Bill Heilig, vice president for Verizon Broadband Solutions.  "But most consumers don't want security software that's complicated to activate and manage.

"With simple installation, updates every few hours, and no need to download or renew updated software, Verizon's Internet Security Suite finds threats fast, isolates problems and eliminates them," Heilig said.

Designed to run behind the scenes whenever the computer is on, Verizon's security suite automatically ensures that customers are protected against the newest threats with the latest detection methods.

The Verizon Internet Security Suite service's features include:

• Anti-spyware -- Offers powerful, up-to-date protection that automatically detects and eliminates a broad range of the spyware and tracking software that inappropriately tracks personal information and is widely responsible for degrading PC performance and online access.  This service acts as a preventive step against the installation of hidden programs in a customer's system and can detect and remove more than 60,000 kinds of spyware.

• Anti-virus - Helps protect against known malicious viruses, worms and Trojans by detecting them, removing them and cleaning the affected files. The service runs in the background and blocks incoming virus attacks and related threats, including e-mail. Updates occur every three hours and are transparent to the end-user.
• Firewall -- Acts as a shield to automatically block unauthorized intrusions, malicious hackers and other hostile attempts to access customers' computers. The Firewall is an easy-to-use, yet powerful defense for both dial-up and high-speed connections.
• Parental control -- Allows consumers to monitor and manage Internet usage by determining the types of content and specific sites that may be accessed, and prevents children from divulging their names or other personal information during Web browsing. Parents can also define appropriate Internet usage and schedules, and block access to non-permitted Internet Web sites.
• Pop-up/ad blocker -Helps ensure a browsing session that is faster and less cluttered by blocking online ads such as pop-ups, pop-unders, banners, animations and tile ads.
• Privacy manager -- Scans all outgoing communications for sensitive or identifying information to help prevent its release without user consent. It also provides control over cookies and how much information Web sites record about browsing habits.  And it has a cleanup utility feature that allows users to automatically remove traces of data left behind by Internet Explorer, MSN Explorer and Windows.
• Content management -- Enables small-business customers to increase employee productivity by controlling the time of day and day of week for Internet access as well as ensuring users do not receive or have access to information not intended for them.

Verizon delivers its security suite in partnership with Radialpoint, a leading provider of managed Internet services to some of the world's largest broadband providers.

To learn more, consumers can visit http://surround.verizon.net/Shop/ and click on Verizon Internet Security Suite in the Utilities tab in the upper left.   

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ), headquartered in New York, is a leader in delivering broadband and other wireline and wireless communication innovations to mass market, business, government and wholesale customers.  Verizon Wireless operates America's most reliable wireless network, serving more than 62 million customers nationwide.  Verizon's Wireline operations include Verizon Business, which delivers innovative and seamless business solutions to customers around the world, and Verizon Telecom, which brings customers the benefits of converged communications, information and entertainment services over the nation's most advanced fiber-optic network.  A Dow 30 company, Verizon has a diverse workforce of more than 238,000 and last year generated consolidated operating revenues of more than $88 billion.  For more information, visit www.verizon.com.

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