Better Business Bureau Subsidiary Launches New Web Site to Accept Seal Requests, Provide Information and Offer New Resources for Internet Businesses

Arlington, VA. November 30, 1998 - BBBOnLine, a subsidiary of the Council of Better Business Bureaus, announced today that it is now accepting applications for a new privacy seal program that will give consumers confidence that their personal information will be safeguarded in cyberspace by companies that are part of the program.

The announcement, made in conjunction with today's White House event on electronic commerce, means that businesses can now apply to participate in the program that will be officially launched in the first quarter of next year.

The BBBOnLine Privacy Program will be the first seal program to offer businesses and consumers a time-tested and trusted mechanism assure that a business is complying with credible online privacy principles.

The White House, along with other regulatory agencies, has challenged the private sector to devise a system of self-regulation that provides consumers with assurance that their personal information is being protected online. The BBBOnLine seal will help consumers recognize web sites engaged in the ethical handling of personal information.

"Businesses and consumers need a trusted, well-known program to provide assurance that privacy is respected in the online world," said Russell T. Bodoff, senior vice president and chief operating officer of BBBOnLine. "Consumers will know that web sites that display a BBBOnLine seal say what they do with personal data, do what they say and have it verified by the BBB."

Information about the criteria for the program or for businesses wishing to apply for a seal can be found at BBBOnLine 's new privacy Web page at www.bbbonline.org.

Web sites earning the seal must carry a privacy policy that clearly tells consumers what information is being collected and how it is being used. BBBOnLine privacy seal program participants must meet the highest standards for the treatment of personal information in cyberspace.

Consumers who believe a web site has violated its own policy can complain to BBBOnLine and seek to have the complaint resolved. A web site guilty of a violation risks losing its seal or having the matter referred to a government enforcement agency.

The BBBOnLine seal is backed by an organization noted for its expertise and experience in conducting successful national self-regulation and dispute resolution programs - the Council of Better Business Bureaus (CBBB).

Following the 85-year-old BBB tradition of voluntary self-regulation, BBBOnLine will award a recognizable, affordable privacy seal to businesses that offer privacy policies meeting a core set of principles outlined in the program. The principles, rooted in the guidelines set out by the Online Privacy Alliance, are the work of leading scholars, privacy advocates and businesses working together to establish principles and mechanisms for enforcement.

The web site also contains information on the BBBOnLine's reliability seal program that currently has more than 2,000 companies participating in the program that assures a web site stands behind its products and services.

Companies should visit the web site for more information on privacy, the seal program and the registration procedures to join the leading companies participating in the privacy seal program.

The BBBOnLine Privacy Program is supported by more than two dozen global companies that are pioneers and leaders in the development of electronic commerce. BBBOnLine's Steering Committee includes: America Online, American Express, AMR Corporation (American Airlines and Travelocity), AT&T, BankAmerica, Dell, Dun & Bradstreet, Eastman Kodak, Equifax, Experian, Ford, Hewlett-Packard, IBM, Intel, J.C. Penney, MCI WorldCom, New York Times Electronic Media, Procter & Gamble,Reed Elsevier (LEXIS-NEXIS), Sony Electronics, US WEST, Viacom, Wells Fargo and Xerox.