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Acquisition of Snapcentric Anchors VeriSign Fraud Detection Service
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA., February 10, 2006 – VeriSign, Inc., (NASDAQ: VRSN), the leading provider of intelligent infrastructure services for Internet and telecommunications networks, today announced the VeriSign Fraud Detection Service, a new solution that forms part of VeriSign’s overall layered authentication solution targeted at preventing online identity theft. In support of this new service, VeriSign has also reached a definitive agreement to acquire Snapcentric, Inc, a provider of online fraud detection solutions using advanced anomaly detection technology. The newly acquired technology will be a key addition to VeriSign’s suite of authentication solutions, providing an invisible layer of protection against online fraud.
Consumer banks and other financial institutions are struggling to comply with recent FFIEC guidelines, which state that user names and passwords are no longer sufficient for high-risk transactions. The VeriSign Fraud Detection Service will complement VeriSign’s existing authentication offerings to help banks achieve FFIEC compliance by authenticating consumers based on behavioral patterns.
The VeriSign Fraud Detection Service will take a self-learning approach to fraud detection, adapting to customer usage habits unique to that individual. Using pattern recognition technology, it flags potentially fraudulent activities based on known types of fraud and behaviors not associated with the user. Because the service is self-learning, it can adapt to changing criminal behavior without manual intervention. VeriSign believes that this unique capability differentiates the Snapcentric technology from all competitive solutions in the marketplace.
The invisible layer of protection afforded by the VeriSign Fraud Detection Service lets financial institutions authenticate users for low risk transactions without changing the online experience. For high risk transactions, the VeriSign Unified Authentication Service provides a wide range of two-factor authentication devices to verify a user’s identity. In combination, these services provide a comprehensive approach to address online banking and e-commerce authentication needs.
A July 2005 report issued by Gartner, Inc titled: “Criminals Exploit Consumer Bank Accounts and ATM System Weaknesses” found that an estimated 1.9 million online adults were victims of illegal checking account transfers, resulting in nearly $3.5 billion in losses or an average of just a little more than $1,800 per incident, with banks absorbing most of these losses.
“Financial institutions of all sizes are looking for easy-to-deploy solutions that help them achieve compliance with FFIEC without further taxing their IT resources or staff,” said Nico Popp, vice president, Authentication Services, VeriSign. “The introduction of the VeriSign Fraud Detection Service is a strategic move that provides VeriSign with advanced technology to help these institutions achieve compliance in a cost effective and non-intrusive way.”
The VeriSign Fraud Detection Service is available for immediate Beta testing, with general availability expected within the next 60 days.
The acquisition of Snapcentric is being accounted for as a purchase transaction and is valued at $12 million. Revenue and earnings contributions from the acquisition will not be material to VeriSign’s 2006 financial results. All of Snapcentric’s employees in the United States and Israel will become part of VeriSign Security Services. The transaction is expected to close later this quarter.
About VeriSign
VeriSign, Inc. (Nasdaq: VRSN), operates intelligent infrastructure services
that enable and protect billions of interactions every day across the
world’s voice and data networks. Additional news and information about
the company is available at www.verisign.com
Trademarks
VeriSign and other trademarks, service marks and logos are registered or unregistered marks of VeriSign, Inc. and its subsidiaries in the United States and in foreign countries. Copyright © 2006 VeriSign, Inc. All rights reserved.
For more information, contact:
VeriSign Media Relations: Brendan P. Lewis, brlewis@verisign.com,
650-426-4470
VeriSign Investor Relations: Tom McCallum, tmccallum@verisign.com,
650-426-3744
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Statements in this announcement other than historical data and information constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. These statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause VeriSign's actual results to differ materially from those stated or implied by such forward-looking statements. The potential risks and uncertainties include, among others, the uncertainty of future revenue and profitability and potential fluctuations in quarterly operating results due to such factors as the inability of VeriSign to successfully market its services, including the Snapcentric technology branded as the VeriSign Fraud Detection Service; customer acceptance of the services as provided by VeriSign; the risk that expected economies in servicing customers will not materialize; the incurrence of unexpected costs integrating the assets; increased competition and pricing pressures; and the inability of VeriSign to successfully develop and market new products and services and customer acceptance of any new products or services. More information about potential factors that could affect the company's business and financial results is included in VeriSign's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including in the company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2004 and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q. VeriSign undertakes no obligation to update any of the forward-looking statement after the date of this press release.