RocketBridge Will Bring to Market an Integrated Suite of Tools for Secure e-Commerce Transactions

Five New Modular Products and Services to Verify Consumer Data, Confirm Identities, Authorize Business Transactions, and Reduce Fraud

CHICAGO--April 10, 2001-- RocketBridge(SM) today announced that it is bringing to market a new modular suite of five online authentication and verification products and services. RocketBridge`s Jupiter(SM) suite was developed to enable more secure online transactions, as well as to help safeguard against identity theft and fraud in the fast-paced Digital Economy.

The Jupiter suite will deliver an important additional layer in a company`s e-Commerce transactional system. Whether it is a business-to-business (B2B) or business-to-consumer (B2C) transaction, the individual participating in the transaction is verified through the Jupiter authentication module, which provides data beyond commonly used identifiers. RocketBridge will access proprietary information from a comprehensive consumer database in a secure environment - something that few solutions on the market provide.

According to industry analysts, the e-Commerce market is expected to grow more than tenfold, reaching nearly $1.3 trillion by 2003. With its Jupiter suite, RocketBridge will be poised to meet these growing needs by providing businesses with the tools and services necessary to help conduct transactions more securely. As a trusted third party that brings together known consumers with known business partners, RocketBridge will be able to help reduce the potential risk of conducting business with an unknown entity.

"Our goal is to be at the forefront of secure e-transaction technology and services," said Jan Davis, leader of RocketBridge. "The initial Jupiter products and services will enable business transactions to be more secure, by verifying the identities of individuals doing business in a variety of electronic marketplaces. At RocketBridge, we are committed to leading the charge to transform transactions from something that is still primarily expensive and paper-based into an economical and streamlined process that can be completed securely online."

The Jupiter suite of authentication and identification tools will include five modules:

1) Authentication: The core module that allows for online identity validation by comparing user input to proprietary data sources and fraud detection products. This module will help businesses and organizations make transaction decisions securely and quickly, whether those entities are offering a membership, credit, purchasing capabilities, or access to sensitive and/or confidential information.

2) Customer Review: An optional module that will allow a pass or fail determination for an individual based on flexible, business-defined factors. Rather than losing a customer who fails automatic authentication, this add-on review module will send auto-declined applications directly to a personal review process.

3) Digital Certificate: RocketBridge will offer Digital Certificates that specifically identify a company or individual in the online environment.

4) Digital Electronic Signature: This service will enable those participating in e-Commerce transactions to "sign" a document online. Digital Electronic Signatures ensure that the document signed online can only be attributable to the signer.

5) Electronic Notary: A companion module to the Digital Certificate, this service will provide a "digital meeting room" for customers who wish to conduct business transactions in a secure online environment - such as a mortgage lender. The service will provide both cost and time savings by eliminating or dramatically reducing expensive paper-intensive transactions.

The Jupiter suite will enable those organizations doing e-Businesses to build better customer relationships - ones that are based on trust and ease of use. For example, the time-consuming mortgage closing processing could now be scheduled in hours, rather than weeks; or verified medical personnel can obtain medical information quickly when timing is most critical. RocketBridge`s integrated suite of secure e-Commerce authentication and identification tools represents a large step forward for organizations that truly want to unlock the power of e-Business.

Businesses and organizations that use RocketBridge`s authentication and identification products and services will be able to customize them to achieve the particular level of security that is needed. The modules are intended to be used together or individually as an organization`s business needs require. Jupiter authentication parameters will be customizable and capable of being set according to business-defined criteria. Each business customer can then choose modules, data elements and tolerance levels under their own set of rules to create a user experience that is uniquely their own.

Rodney Snell, founder and the chief evangelist at SinglesClick, the online dating service, is already working with RocketBridge to deploy the Jupiter suite. "Using Jupiter identity tools will give our clients more confidence and a greater sense of security when they are searching for that special someone online," Snell said. "With Jupiter tools, our discriminating SinglesClick customers will definitely know that their potential matches are who they say they are."

To bring the real benefits of secure e-Commerce transactions to a greater number of businesses and organizations, RocketBridge will be partnering with leading companies in bill presentment and payment, credit decisioning, frequency/loyalty, e-business marketing and other areas of the digital economy. In addition, RocketBridge is working with a variety of industry groups and forums to help initiate uniform standards for secure e-Commerce transactions - standards that will strive to balance business and consumer privacy needs.

All five modules - Authentication, Customer Review, Digital Certificate, Digital Electronic Signature and Electronic Notary - will be included in the Jupiter suite. Depending on a business`s particular requirements, transaction volume and complexity, pricing for the Jupiter authentication and identification modules begins at approximately $3 per transaction.

About RocketBridge

Headquartered in Chicago, RocketBridge, a business unit of Trans Union LLC, focuses on facilitating secure transactions over intranets, extranets, and the Internet. Through its first set of customizable authentication and identification products and services, the Jupiter suite, RocketBridge will provide businesses and organizations with authentication and identification capabilities that enable e-Business transactions to take place more securely, quickly and cost-effectively.

Its development philosophy centers on three key principles: safety, speed and versatility. To deliver on this philosophy, RocketBridge will also partner with other well-regarded sources of business and financial data to bring the benefits of secure e-Commerce to even more businesses and individuals.