Blue Coat Teams with Austin Habitat for Humanity to Train Families in Online Safety & Internet Parenting
Blue Coat Systems Provides K9 Web Protection, Training and Resources to Low-Income Families Receiving Computers with Their New Homes
SUNNYVALE, Calif., July 5, 2007 –Blue Coat Systems (Nasdaq: BCSI), the leader in secure content and application delivery, today announced it is working with the Austin, Texas affiliate of Habitat for Humanity to educate and train new home recipient families that have also been given computers with Internet access. The mandatory Internet training program about online safety measures and effective Internet parenting strategies meets the requirements of the AT&T AccessAll Computer Partnership, the nation's largest program designed to provide in-home Internet and technology access to low-income families across America. Under its Community Outreach Program, Blue Coat will provide Austin Habitat for Humanity with the necessary tools, materials and resources, including the Blue Coat® K9 Web Protection filter, to provide to its families.
“We are pleased to train families who are eager to learn and appreciate the benefits of the Internet, yet are concerned about the potential safety issues that may arise,” said John Carosella, vice president of content control for Blue Coat Systems. “Working with Austin Habitat for Humanity is a tremendous opportunity for Blue Coat’s Community Outreach Program to help first generation Internet parents who have minimal or no experience in using a computer or the Internet. Our vision is to engage with Habitat for Humanity chapters nationwide to effectively help these first generation Internet families create a safe Internet environment within their homes and communities.”
K9 Web Protection Keeps Families Safe Online
Designed for parents, K9 Web Protection implements the same enterprise-class Web filtering technology used by Blue Coat enterprise and government customers worldwide. K9 Web Protection divides the Internet into 60 categories, relying on Blue Coat’s commercial filtering service that processes 80 million Web site rating requests per day. Parents can configure the software to block or allow specific categories such as pornography, spyware, and adult/mature content, and also block access to the web at selected times of day—after bedtime, for example. K9 Web Protection is offered free of charge through the Blue Coat Community Outreach Program (www.k9webprotection.com) which provides materials and resources to educate Internet parents about the impact of the Internet on children and on parenting strategies.
“Providing families in need of affordable housing the opportunity for homeownership is the primary mission of Austin Habitat,” said Michael Willard, AHFH Executive Director. “Habitat opens the door for unlimited options to the families we serve and ensure those families are prepared for them. This technology initiative brings new and exciting worlds into the homes of Austin Habitat HomeBuyers and K9 Web Protection makes those worlds a safer place for parents and children to explore.”
During its house dedication ceremony on July 7, Austin Habitat for Humanity will honor Blue Coat for its commitment in helping train families on Internet safety and effective Internet parenting strategies in the 21st century. The ceremony will be held from 10am-12pm Central Time, and is expected to draw over 150 attendees. The next scheduled Internet safety training program for the new Austin homeowners will be held on July 16 and led by John Carosella.
About Austin Habitat for Humanity
Austin Habitat for Humanity has served the Austin community since 1985, creating 197 affordable new homes with low-income families. Homes are created with volunteer labor and community funding, then sold to AHFH HomeBuyers with zero-interest mortgage loans. Each HomeBuyer participates in financial education programs and contributes some 400 hours of “sweat-equity”. For more information, visit www.austinhabitat.org.
About Blue Coat Systems, Inc.
Blue Coat secures Web communications and accelerates business applications across the distributed enterprise. Blue Coat’s family of appliances and client-based solutions – deployed in branch offices, Internet gateways, end points, and data centers – provide intelligent points of policy-based control enabling IT organizations to optimize security and accelerate performance between users and applications. Blue Coat has installed more than 30,000 appliances worldwide and is ranked #1 by IDC in the Secure Content and Application Delivery market. Blue Coat is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California, and can be reached at (408) 220-2200 or www.bluecoat.com.
FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS: The statements contained in this press release that are not purely historical are forward-looking statements, including statements regarding Blue Coat Systems’ expectations, beliefs, intentions or strategies regarding the future, and including statements regarding the capabilities and expected performance of Blue Coat Systems’ products. All forward-looking statements included in this press release are based upon information available to Blue Coat Systems as of the date hereof, and Blue Coat Systems assumes no obligation to update any such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected. These and other risks relating to Blue Coat Systems’ business are set forth in Blue Coat Systems’ most recently filed Form 10-Q for the quarter ended January 31, 2007 and Form 10-K for the year ended April 30, 2006, and other reports filed from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
