MCI To Acquire Managed Security Services Provider NetSec

Deal Strengthens MCI's Security Leadership Serving Large Corporate and Government Customers Ashburn, Va., and Herndon, Va., January 20, 2005 - MCI, Inc. (NASDAQ: MCIP) and NetSec, Inc., a privately-held provider of managed security services, today announced an agreement under which MCI will acquire NetSec, Inc., for approximately $105 million in cash. The combination gives global and government customers the most advanced managed and professional security services available to help them protect critical company information assets and provide them with the strongest security defense. The acquisition accelerates MCI's ability to deliver advanced security services by more than a year, further enabling it to meet the complex security requirements of its high-end customers worldwide. The companies expect to close the transaction within 30 days. NetSec, one of the fastest growing managed security services providers, is a leader in delivering managed and professional security services to the top U.S. government agencies and some of the largest companies in the world. With security monitoring and management capabilities in 32 countries spanning the Americas, Europe, Africa and Asia Pacific, NetSec's advanced product suite allows MCI to further address the full spectrum of security requirements, creating additional value for its largest global and government customers. "This acquisition accelerates MCI's strategy to deliver next generation IP-based security services to our business and government customers," said Jonathan Crane, MCI executive vice president and chief strategy officer. "We're combining MCI's global assets, capital strength and security services portfolio with NetSec's high-end managed security and professional security services to create a new industry leader in the network security space." "MCI and NetSec have a shared vision of providing innovative network and security services to customers that address the compliance and risk management challenges they face now and in the future," said Glenn Hazard, NetSec chairman and chief executive officer. "MCI and NetSec together will accelerate this vision." MCI plans to combine its network-based intelligence with NetSec's premise-based intelligence to provide customers an unprecedented view of their security environment across multiple systems and devices. The Company also intends to extend the strength of NetSec's Finium security services platform to global and government customers who want to bolster their security defenses. While this acquisition positions MCI to focus additional resources on one of the fastest growing segments of the security market, it is complementary to its existing strategic security partnerships. About MCI
MCI, Inc. (NASDAQ: MCIP) is a leading global communications provider, delivering innovative, cost-effective, advanced communications connectivity to businesses, governments and consumers. With the industry's most expansive global IP backbone, based on the number of company-owned points of presence, and wholly-owned data networks, MCI develops the converged communications products and services that are the foundation for commerce and communications in today's market. For more information, go to www.mci.com. About NetSec
NetSec is a leading provider of managed and professional security services for global corporations and government agencies. With a vendor-neutral approach to the lifecycle security needs of a customer, NetSec offers a suite of security services powered by Finium, a co-managed platform operated via a 24x7 disaster-resilient security operations center that continuously monitors, analyzes, and mitigates security risk with the customer. By delivering unsurpassed expertise to help organizations plan and measure their security programs, establish and monitor compliance, and optimize security infrastructure operations, NetSec has gained recognition in both the U.S. federal and global marketplaces. Five of the 10 largest companies in the world and nine of the 15 executive departments in the U.S. government rely on NetSec, making it one of the fastest growing providers of managed security services. Founded in 1998 by former government security experts, NetSec is a privately held company with headquarters in Herndon, Virginia and London. For more information, visit www.netsec.net.