CUPERTINO, Calif. - Oct. 17, 2001- Symantec Corp. (Nasdaq:SYMC), a world leader in Internet security technology, today reported results for the fiscal second quarter 2002, ended Sept. 28, 2001. Symantec posted revenue for the quarter of $242.4 million, as compared to $226.4 million for the same quarter last year.

Net income before the amortization of acquisition-related charges for the fiscal second quarter was $42.3 million, compared to $47.9 million from the same quarter last year. Earnings per share before the amortization of acquisition related charges for the fiscal second quarter was $0.56, compared to earnings per share of $0.61 for the year ago quarter. All figures include historical results of operations from the acquired AXENT Technologies. Including the amortization of goodwill and all other acquisition related expenses, Symantec reported a net loss per share of $0.16, compared to a net income per share of $0.61 for the same quarter last year.

"The security landscape is changing and the new breed of blended threats we experienced during the quarter raised the awareness of individuals and enterprises of the need for comprehensive security solutions," said John W. Thompson, Symantec chairman, president and CEO. "We are pleased with our fast, comprehensive response to these threats and the trust our customers have placed in us."

Symantec's worldwide enterprise solutions, comprised of both security and enterprise administration products, accounted for 68 percent of total sales compared to 64 percent in the same quarter last year. The enterprise security business performed solidly, representing 46 percent of total sales with growth of 29 percent over the same quarter last year. International revenues comprised 40 percent of total revenues, led by 22 percent growth in the Asia Pacific region compared to the same quarter last year

Quarterly Highlights

• Symantec's enterprise success is punctuated by the continued expansion of its worldwide customer base, including new or extended contracts with companies such as the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Co., Samsung Electronics, Dana Corporation, the Office of Management and Budget for Puerto Rico, Downey Savings and BMW AG.
  
  
• Symantec's total anti-virus product sales increased 46 percent during the quarter as compared to the year ago quarter, nearly double the industry growth rate. Sales of the company's intrusion detection solutions increased 43 percent from the same quarter a year ago, with sequential growth of 25 percent. Vulnerability management solution grew 53 percent sequentially.
  
  
• In July, Symantec delivered integrated web filtering and anti-virus technologies, giving customers a seamless solution to address malware threats and content filtering needs at the gateway. Symantec Web Security provides maximum protection against known and unknown virus threats and includes comprehensive content filtering options to increase employee productivity, reduce exposure to corporate liability and preserve valuable bandwidth. In addition, Symantec's new Norton AntiVirus for Gateways 2.5 provides unsurpassed protection against virus threats that propagate via e-mail with up to two times higher performance than the competition.
  
  
• During the quarter, Symantec continued the worldwide expansion of its managed security services business with the acquisition of Lindner & Pelc Consult GmBH, a Berlin-based consulting firm which specializes in network security. This acquisition expands Symantec's managed security services capabilities and customer base and provides a local operation center with local language support.
  
  
• More than 14,000 partners have signed up worldwide to participate in the new partner program Symantec launched in July. Through certification programs in virus protection and content management, firewall and VPN technologies, intrusion detection systems and vulnerability management, Symantec is providing partners with the expertise and resources to plan and manage complex security architectures.
  
  
• Launched during the quarter, Norton AntiVirus 2002 became the world's first anti-virus solution to earn the "Designed for Windows XP" logo certification from Microsoft. The "Designed for Windows XP" logo assures consumers that Norton AntiVirus has passed a rigorous set of certification requirements and has proven to provide an optimal experience for users of Microsoft's newest operating system. Other solutions introduced during the quarter bearing the "Designed for Windows XP" logo include Norton Internet Security 2002, Norton Personal Firewall 2002, Norton SystemWorks 2002, Norton Utilities 2002, Norton CleanSweep 2002, and Norton Ghost 2002.

Conference Call
Symantec has scheduled a conference call for 4:30 p.m. EDT today to discuss fiscal second quarter results. Interested parties may access the conference call on the Internet at www.symantec.com/invest/. To listen to the live call, please go to the Web site at least 15 minutes early to register, download and install any necessary audio software. In addition, conference call numbers are available. The listen-only number for domestic callers is 1-800-289-0518, while international listeners can dial 913-981-5532. A replay of the call will be available on the Internet at www.symantec.com/invest/ until Nov. 16, 2001.

Consolidated Financial Statements

About Symantec
Symantec, a world leader in Internet security technology, provides a broad range of content and network security software and appliance solutions to individuals, enterprises and service providers. The company is a leading provider of virus protection, firewall and virtual private network, vulnerability management, intrusion detection, Internet content and e-mail filtering, remote management technologies and security services to enterprises and service providers around the world. Symantec's Norton brand of consumer security products is a leader in worldwide retail sales and industry awards. Headquartered in Cupertino, Calif., Symantec has worldwide operations in 37 countries. For more information, please visit www.symantec.com.

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. All prices noted are in US dollars and are valid only in the United States.

Symantec, the Symantec logo, AXENT, AXENT Technologies, and the AXENT logo are trademarks or registered trademarks, in the United States and certain other countries, of Symantec Corporation or its subsidiaries. Additional company and product names may be trademarks or registered trademarks of the individual companies and are respectfully acknowledged.

FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENT: This press release contains forward-looking statements, including statements regarding anticipated activities and results, that involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause our actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements to differ materially from results expressed or implied by this press release. Such risk factors include, among others: the risks that current global adverse economic conditions and reduced spending will continue or worsen; currency exchange fluctuations will adversely affect our results; the continuing integration of Symantec and AXENT will not be successful; the difficulty of developing and marketing products that compete effectively with others; new security threats and other economic, business, competitive and/or regulatory factors affecting Symantec's business generally. Actual results may differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements in this press release. Additional information concerning these and other risk factors is contained in the Risk Factors sections of the Company¹s previously filed Form 10-K for the year ended March 30, 2001 and the Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 29, 2001.