An Article From The Financial Post.
Article on Jawz in the Financial Post today!
pg. C5 ... here is the article (basically a re-hash of yesterday's news release)
Thursday, June 10, 1999
Jaws' XMail guards e-mail
Encryption technology: Software protects
messages from illegal access
Carol Howes
Financial Post
CALGARY - Borrowing from the highly popular X-Files,
market-savvy Jaws Technology Inc. has developed a low-cost,
simplified software known as XMail that protects e-mail messages
from unauthorized access.
Robert Kubbernus, chief executive, said yesterday the company is
in discussions with a number of Internet service providers, including
BCT.Telus Communications Inc. and Virginia-based PsiNet Inc., to
offer the encryption software free with Internet access.
Jaws, which has developed the strongest encryption technology on
the market, bought the rights to use the XMail name from British
Telecom PLC for $5,000. Acquiring the XMail brand name and
being able to play on the slogan "Trust No One" were key to
releasing the product, Mr. Kubbernus said.
"British Telecom believed in our approach and understood the
importance of this initiative," Mr. Kubbernus said. "It's one thing to
have an incredibly strong or powerful product, but to also control an
international brand name helps ensure market ownership."
The company, which went public last year, has drawn wide-spread
attention for its impenetrable technology. Last year, Jaws offered
$5-million to anyone who could break the code of its software.
More than 600 hackers tried and failed.
Jaws' technology is based on an encryption algorithm that uses
4,096 keys to scramble data. The strongest currently used
commercially in the United States is 128-bit key encryption.
Its new $20 e-mail program can be downloaded from the Internet
and is compatible with most e-mail systems.
John Taylor, president of Tech Marketing Associates, a
Mountainview, Calif.-based high-tech marketing firm, said the
potential for the product is large.
Tech Marketing is negotiating with Jaws for the rights to market and
distribute XMail in the United States.
Mr. Taylor said his private firm's cryptologist was one of about 200
cryptologists who recently broke through the 128-bit key
encryption system but has failed to penetrate Jaws' technology.
"The information security market is expected to reach $4-billion by
the year 2004," said Greg Naderi, a security industry analyst with
Frost & Sullivan. "I definitely think Jaws has the right idea and
they're moving in the right direction. Jaws has been a pioneer in this
market."
Mr. Kubbernus said Jaws hopes to achieve a base of 10 million
users of the product within 18 months. The company is also
preparing to role out an e-mail "shredder" to ensure the complete
destruction of e-mails. |
