<nettime> press release XS4ALL and Zero Knowledge Systems

["Sjoera Nas" <sjoera@xs4all.nl>]

[by way of Patrice Riemens <patrice@xs4all.nl>]


Dear Sir, Madam,

Enclosed you will find a press release from Dutch ISP XS4ALL and Canadian
privacy-software company Zero Knowledge Systems. You can also find a
separate XS4ALL press release online at http://www.xs4all.nl/index_e.html

****

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

DUTCH ISP SETS LEGAL PRECEDENT FOR CONSUMER PRIVACY ON THE INTERNET

Amsterdam and Montreal
--December 7, 1999--

Leading Dutch Internet Service Provider XS4ALL scored a major legal
victory for consumer privacy after an Amsterdam court upheld its right to
publicize, in a controversial advertising campaign, the privacy policies
of Hotmail and several free Dutch ISPs. The court also allowed the
counterclaim of XS4ALL, finding that ISP Wanadoo should immediately
discontinue advertising in which it guarantees that customers' details are
not used by third parties, as Wanadoo is unable to support that claim.
(For excerpts from the decision see: 
 http://www.xs4all.nl/announce/uitspraak2dec99_e.html). 

In the ad campaign, XS4ALL posters quote the terms of several free
Internet providers as well as Hotmail, the free Web-based email service,
which state that they can use customer information for third party
marketing purposes. "Ultimately everything has its price," say the XS4ALL
posters, which can be viewed at http://www.xs4all.nl/campagne. XS4ALL was
sued by two free Dutch ISPs, Wanadoo and NokNok, as a result of its poster
campaign.

"The judge's verdict implies that Internet users should be informed
clearly and precisely what the service provider intends to do with their
data before signing up. Hiding this information, or vaguely describing it,
is clearly condemned in the legal decision," said XS4ALL spokesperson
Sjoera Nas. "Internet privacy in the Netherlands is now taken very
seriously." 

In response to worldwide Internet privacy concerns, XS4ALL has partnered
with Zero-Knowledge Systems (http://www.zeroknowledge.com) to offer its
customers total Internet privacy. XS4ALL is one of 140 partners in the
Freedom Network, a globally distributed network of servers hosted by ISPs
and independent server operators in partnership with Zero-Knowledge. In
addition to hosting a Freedom Server, XS4ALL is offering the new
Freedom(TM)  software to its 70,000 users through a special promotion,
inviting each user to download the software for an extended evaluation
period. 

"XS4ALL is proving to consumers that even free Internet service has a
cost--often, the wholesale invasion of your privacy. The more consumers
understand this, the more they will look for ways to control who gets
access to their personal information," said Jordan Socran, Director of
Internet Partnerships for Zero-Knowledge Systems. "This case sets an
important precedent and shows that despite posting terms-of-service and
privacy policies, many ISPs do not want their customers to know their
personal data is being collected and sold. If every site put the fine
print of their privacy policies front and center, most Netizens would be
shocked at what they're agreeing to." 

About XS4ALL: 

XS4ALL (http://www.xs4all.nl/), founded in 1993 as the first Internet
provider catering to the Dutch consumer market, is the third-largest paid
Internet Service Provider in the Netherlands, in both the consumer and
business markets. Well-known for its technical quality and privacy
protection, XS4ALL won a landmark legal decision against the state in 1998
concerning a request to wiretap an Internet user. All shares of XS4ALL
were sold to KPN Telecom in December 1998, under the unique provision that
XS4ALL maintains full independence for a period of at least 3 years.
According to a recently-published test in Net Magazine, XS4ALL is the
fastest of the 15 free and paid Internet dial-up providers tested. 

About Zero-Knowledge Systems:

Founded in 1997, Zero-Knowledge Systems (http://www.zeroknowledge.com) is
the first and only company providing a total privacy solution for all
Internet activities. Zero-Knowledge's Freedom(TM) empowers users to browse
Internet sites, chat, participate in online discussions, and send email
while maintaining total control of their personal information. The
complete package, including five digital identities called pseudonyms or
"nyms", will sell as a commercial download for $49.95 US in December 1999.
A 30-day free trial version, including three pseudonyms, will also be
available for download. Based in Montreal, Zero-Knowledge employs 90
people and is rapidly expanding its operations. 

Consumers wishing to download Zero-Knowledge's Freedom privacy technology
can visit http://www.freedom.net. Journalists can visit the Zero-Knowledge
pressroom at http://www.zeroknowledge.com/pressroom.

(Zero-Knowledge Systems and Freedom are trademarks of Zero-Knowledge
Systems, Inc. All other names are the property of their respective
owners.) 

For more information or to schedule an interview, contact:

XS4ALL:
Sjoera Nas, Director of Public Relations
011 06 55 122345
sjoera@xs4all.nl

Zero-Knowledge Systems:
Craig Silverman, Public Relations Associate
514.287.7447 x 228
craig@zeroknowledge.com



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