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Internet’s Most-Visited Web Sites Rely on GeoTrust SSL More than Any Other Certificate Authority

Netcraft Survey Again Shows GeoTrust SSL Secures More Alexa Top 1 Million Domains than Any Other SSL Provider, Including Go Daddy; GeoTrust Leads Low-Cost SSL Brand Category

Mountain View, Calif. – August 4, 2010 – GeoTrust, Inc., leading certificate authority, today announced that its Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) certificates continue to secure more of the most-visited web sites on the internet than any other certificate authority (CA). The results, which were determined using Netcraft July 2010 SSL survey data against the Alexa Top 1 Million Domains list for the same time period, highlight the popularity of GeoTrust over low-cost competitors on web sites that matter most.

The Netcraft SSL survey is a tally of all publicly-facing SSL certificates on the Internet, including "parked" certificates on unused or infrequently-visited web sites. The Alexa 1 Million is a well-known site traffic measurement service that lists the million most visited sites, ranked by order of popularity.

The cross-reference revealed 35,142 unique domains protected by GeoTrust® SSL certificates out of approximately 165,000 of the Alexa 1 Million on which Netcraft found certificates. In contrast, Go Daddy, which has long claimed leadership in the low-cost SSL category, protected only 25,608 unique domains in this same set of sites.

As the chief intended purpose of SSL is authenticating sites and protecting transactions, the domains secured by GeoTrust serve some of the most visited web sites on the internet. In contrast, Go Daddy purports a large number of certificates on domains getting comparatively less traffic or possibly not using or needing encryption at all. Customers with such sites may not be cognizant that they have an active SSL certificate or even what SSL does.

"GeoTrust makes it easy and affordable for businesses like ours to build trust with internet customers, and that’s crucial, because online consumers have the ability to shop anywhere they want," said Melanie Mueller, president of Mel Boteri. "By displaying the GeoTrust True Site Seal, we instantly communicate trust to our customers, assuring them that they can transact on our web site with confidence."

Although VeriSign is widely recognized as the leader in the premium SSL certificate and online trust category, GeoTrust competes with brands such as Go Daddy for leadership in the low-cost category, where low prices are a key consideration factor for purchase and the most important product feature is simply to enable encryption.

“The ‘Alexa Netcraft Index’ is an accurate depiction of the SSL market share, reflecting the preference of GeoTrust to authenticate and protect the most visited web sites on the internet,” said Jeff Barto, senior product marketing manager for GeoTrust. “GeoTrust is selected almost twice as often as Go Daddy, exemplifying clear leadership in the low-cost SSL category.”

With SSL certificates issued in more than 150 countries around the world, GeoTrust offers world-class SSL certificates with fast delivery at a cost-effective price. Enabling up to 256-bit SSL encryption, they include a range of GeoTrust® True Site seals based on the desired level of identity verification.

GeoTrust’s SSL solutions present a wide range of cost-effective options, including standard or Extended Validation (EV) SSL certificates, support of up to 256-bit SSL encryption, static or dynamic GeoTrust True Site seals, and warranty protection ranging from $10,000 to $150,000. In addition, GeoTrust offers multi-domain support in the Subject Alternative Names (SANs) field for greater flexibility to work with products like Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 and Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007. Companies can sign up today for a free 30-day trial of GeoTrust SSL certificate protection.

About GeoTrust  
A wholly owned subsidiary of VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ: VRSN), GeoTrust is the world's largest low-cost digital certificate provider. More than 100,000 customers in over 150 countries trust GeoTrust to secure online transactions and conduct business over the Internet. GeoTrust’s range of digital certificate and trust products enable organizations of all sizes to maximize the security of their digital transactions cost-effectively.  For more information, visit www.geotrust.com.

Statements in this announcement other than historical data and information constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. These statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause VeriSign’s actual results to differ materially from those stated or implied by such forward-looking statements.   The potential risks and uncertainties include, among others, the uncertainty of future revenue and profitability; potential fluctuations in quarterly operating results due to such factors as the inability of VeriSign to successfully develop and market new products and services and customer acceptance of any products or services, including those mentioned herein, increasing competition and pricing pressure from competing services offered at prices below our prices; and the uncertainty of whether VeriSign will achieve its stated objectives. More information about potential factors that could affect the company's business and financial results is included in VeriSign, Inc.'s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including in the company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2009, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and Current Reports on Form 8-K. VeriSign undertakes no obligation to update any of the forward-looking statements after the date of this press release.

Contact
Francisca Llamas
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fllamas@webershandwick.com

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