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Safe Surfing is 'Paramount'

Symantec issues Safe Surfing Tips for a Secure Online Christmas

SYDNEY --NSW - December 3, 2002 -- Symantec, the world leader in Internet security, is urging consumers to protect their PCs from viruses and hackers this holiday season. As the Internet becomes a way of life for many Australians, Christmas is a peak time for emailing family and friends, as well as enjoying the benefits of online shopping, travel bookings, and banking.

While reputable ecommerce sites have security measures in place to keep online transactions secure, Australians also need to ensure that their private information (such as credit card numbers, bank account details & home address) are not being accessed by an unknown third party whilst online.

New computer viruses and worms are discovered at a rate of 10 to 15 a day. Hackers are constantly on the look out for new vulnerabilities and opportunities to exploit and an unprotected home computer is an easy target. Today there are more than 60,000 known viruses and hacking attacks are becoming commonplace.

To encourage responsible protection from cyber nasties, Symantec has provided a list of top tips for safe surfing. As a bonus this Christmas, Symantec is also offering a Paramount Movie title to customers purchasing Norton Internet Security 2003, or other selected products from the Norton 2003 range. Customers can choose from a range of move classics, including Grease PG, Top Gun PG, Ferris Bueller's Day Off PG, Saturday Night Fever MA15+, The Truman Show PG or Ghost M15+.

"Christmas is a peak time for online activity, therefore, there is a greater potential for hackers and cyber thieves to take advantage of unprotected online consumers." said Carolyn Hay, Consumer Sales and Marketing Manager for Symantec Australia. "To ensure consumers can continue to enjoy the benefits of the Internet safety, they must fully protect themselves against viruses and hacker activity. Norton Internet Security 2003 not only protects against viruses, but keeps hackers out, protects your private information, filters annoying SPAM email, and even blocks children from visiting inappropriate web pages."

"Many people are not aware that even the apparently harmless animated Christmas card from a friend could in fact be a device which allows hackers to break into their computers and record personal and financial information," said Ms Hay.

The Paramount movie offer is valid with purchases of selected Symantec products through major software resellers from November 18, 2002 to January 13, 2003.

For further information visit www.symantec.com/aunz-grease.

Top Tips for a Safe and Secure Christmas

To make sure your home PC is fully protected against unwanted viruses and potential security breaches, Symantec suggests the following easy steps:

  • Start off by assessing your computer's level of security with Symantec Security Check, a free Web-based tool available at www.symantec.com/securitycheck. Symantec Security Check takes just a few minutes to diagnose your PC's security.

  • Use passwords that are a combination of letters, numbers and/or symbols. This makes it harder for a hacker to break into your system. In addition, don't use the same password for every program or account.

  • Supervise your kids while they are on the Internet. While there's no better protection for your kids against cyber predators and inappropriate Web content than parental supervision, it is still important to install filtering and parental control software like Symantec's Norton Internet Security.

  • Double check before you double click. If you receive an e-mail with an attachment that looks suspicious, even if you know the sender, call and make sure the e-mail was intended to be sent to you and is safe to open.

  • Protect your privacy when you are online. The first thing you need to do is turn off your computer's ability to receive cookies by clicking on the "Preferences" option on your browser. This will stop Web sites from tracking your movement on the Internet.

  • Have more than anti-virus protection on your PC. Complete protection against Internet threats requires an integrated solution like Symantec's Norton Internet Security, which includes Norton Intrusion Detection, Norton Personal Firewall, Norton AntiVirus, Norton Privacy Control, Norton Parental Control, Norton Spam Filter and ad blocking. Ask your nearest retailer for more information.

  • Make sure that the next time you go online to purchase a product or register for a service that you read the Web site's privacy policy. Some Web sites sell personal information to third party marketing companies, which could result in a deluge of unwanted spam e-mails. If you're already a recipient of spam, try using filtering software like Norton Spam Alert, which is included in Symantec's Norton Internet Security.

  • Keep subscription services updated for products like Symantec's Norton Internet Security, Norton AntiVirus and Norton SystemWorks. With an updated subscription, Symantec's LiveUpdate will automatically send the most recent virus definitions, firewall rules and product updates to your computer.

  • If you are using firewall software, make sure it includes intrusion detection, which you can find in Symantec's Norton Personal Firewall and Norton Internet Security. With today's complex blended threats, intrusion detection, which adds another layer of security by examining the content of Internet traffic for malicious code and attacks, is a must-have.

  • Fight back. If you suspect a hacker is attempting to break into your computer, report the attack to the hacker's Internet service provider (ISP). Symantec's Norton Internet Security includes a "ping" log, which notes attempted attacks and the originating Internet protocol (IP) address. Users can use the product's Visual Tracking feature to find the source of the potential attack on a world map and report it to the proper ISP.

About Symantec
Symantec, the 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 client, gateway and server security solutions for 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 38 countries. For more information, please visit www.symantec.com.au

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