HOSTOPIA LAUNCHES SYMANTEC'S EMAIL ANTI-VIRUS Hosted anti-virus application boosts service provider revenues and protects business email users Toronto, July 16, 2002 - Hostopia announces the worldwide launch of Email Virus ScanTM, a hosted anti-virus application powered by Symantec, the world's leader in technology that protects against viruses spread via email. Email Virus Scan is a hosted service available to all hosting service providers among Hostopia's network of over 250 partners. Any web or email hosting provider can now offer this powerful value-added service which meets a critical need in today's business hosting: to protect against destructive and costly email-borne viruses. Franc Nemanic, president of Hostopia elaborates, "this service allows small and medium sized enterprises to economically and reliably protect themselves against the destructive ravages of email-borne viruses. If their web and email hosting provider offers this service, they can probably protect every email user in their company for as little as $1.00 per month per user." This low price point makes it difficult to justify not adopting Email Virus Scan. According to the latest statistics from ICSA Labs 7th Annual Virus Prevalence survey, one virus alone, called "Nimda" affected 68% of North American companies and was cited as the most successful virus during 2001. Nimda had such a widespread impact on North American businesses chiefly because of its use of email as its method of infection and transmission. By stealing email addresses from electronic address books, Nimda was able to proliferate itself at an astounding rate. Hostopia has chosen to target email-borne viruses because they are responsible for the vast majority of business damage caused by virus infection. Companies using this technology will be protected both by inbound virus attacks as well as the unintentional spreading of these viruses to those to whom they send email. Hostopia's Email Virus Scan is powered by the most advanced virus protection available today, Symantec CarrierScan Server. CarrierScan employs cutting edge technology that features Symantec's LiveUpdate™ technology for virus definition updates and intelligent scans using Bloodhound™ heuristics that can identify unknown malicious code. Symantec's anti-virus technology detects viruses, worms and Trojan Horses in all major file types including various compressed file formats such as .ZIP or .TAR files. A remarkable feature of Hostopia's offering is that it will automatically email the user when a virus has been detected and also copy a message to the email address of the party who sent the virus. Knowing that the virus detecting and cleaning service is actually working is very powerful. Hosting providers who offer Hostopia's Email Virus Scan to their end-user clients will have the assurance and confidence of knowing they are selling the undisputed, leading service which has the most success in identifying and eliminating the most viruses, current and new. The business model for Hostopia's solution is compelling for both service providers and end users. Says Nemanic, "hosting service providers are often stuck in a commoditized rut of hosting services that do not generate huge margins. Email Virus Scan gives them a new, differentiating service that offers high revenue growth and enhanced margins for their service. End users also win, because Email Virus Scan is a reliable and economical service compared to the alternatives. These include either buying individual desktop licenses for each business email user, or setting up a costly firewall server in house. Both options demand constant maintenance, upgrading and internal policing to ensure all employees are covered with the latest version. Having only one employee using a slightly outdated anti-virus version exposes the entire company and all its partners to the ravages of a new-generation virus." Email Virus Scan automatically updates the version of every user by protecting that company's entire domain (the master address through which all email enters and leaves a company). As a low cost monthly subscription, it is both inexpensive and easy to maintain, since Hostopia does all the maintenance centrally. Hosting service providers of all sizes from small independent developers to national ISPs and telcos can launch Email Virus Scan through Hostopia's award-winning private labeled hosting services with no up front investment. This should virtually eliminate any barrier to service providers and their customers taking immediate steps to stamp out email-borne viruses that can destroy vital company files and incur immeasurable financial damage. About Hostopia Hostopia's proprietary technology provides private-branded hosting, email and e-commerce solutions that specifically address the needs of telcos, ISPs, cable companies, domain registrars, and other Web Service Providers. Hostopia's WebhostOS is a breakthrough technology that creates a single system for managing "UNIX/WinNT" applications. The company was recently awarded "Best Private Label" Web Hosting company by Web Hosting Magazine. Hostopia currently serves over 200 Web Hosting companies, to make it one of the fastest growing wholesale web hosting companies in the world. Hostopia is located in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida and Toronto, Canada.

Contact Info:

Franc Nemanic President Hostopia.com 1-800-322-9438 Email: president@hostopia.com