earthport Chooses Baltimore Technologies to Add e-Security to Its Online Payment Infrastructure

Business Wire, April 24, 2001

Business Editors & Technology Writers

LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 24, 2001

Baltimore Technologies (Nasdaq:BALT)(London:BLM):

Digital Certificates Provide User Authentication and Trust

for Multi-Currency Payments Online

earthport (AIM;EPO), a provider of on-line payment infrastructure systems, and Baltimore Technologies (Nasdaq:BALT)(London:BLM), a global leader in e-security, today announced an agreement that enables earthport to provide an enhanced security layer in its online payment solutions to customers worldwide.

Under this agreement, earthport will integrate Baltimore's digital certificate technology into its Internet payment infrastructure for certain customers to enable secure, authenticated, instantaneous electronic transfer of money in the virtual world.

earthport provides an Internet payment infrastructure to banks, telcos, portals and trade exchanges. This payment solution enables the members of these communities to move money in any amount among themselves, and make payments out of the community through the banking system. It does this by securely linking earthport's secure transaction processing platform directly to the traditional banking system. Users' money never actually leaves the banking system. Through the adoption of Baltimore UniCERT Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) technology, the members of communities using the earthport infrastructure can authenticate each other to an even greater degree where necessary, increasing trust behind their online payments.

According to earthport CEO, Jon Baile: "The agreement with Baltimore builds on our partnerships with leading IT players such as IBM, EMC and eircom to enable the provision of a secure Internet payment infrastructure that can handle a high volume of transactions in the banking world. The use of Baltimore e-security, and particularly digital certificates, adds further secure authentication to our offering. This is especially suitable for larger transactions in the B2B and B2C marketplace."

"We are excited about partnering with a leading e-payment company who have recognised the critical role that trust plays in capturing customers in the new economy," said Aidan Gallagher, Executive Vice President of Global Business Development at Baltimore Technologies. "Baltimore is in the business of providing a trusted infrastructure for e-businesses worldwide. This combined secure-payments offering optimizes earthport's industrial strength infrastructure to enable pre-registered users to securely make and receive multi-currency, credit card, debit card and cash payments across the Internet, wireless networks, digital television and trade exchange platforms."

earthport is currently working with a number of major financial institutions, including Egg Plc, OKObank NY, and Barclays Bank Plc to implement the payment system. Other customers include Mviva Ltd, 85%-owned by The Carphone Warehouse Group and 15%-owned by AOL Europe. earthport has recently secured infrastructure agreements with eircom, IBM and EMC to increase handling capacity to 150 million transactions per day and has a worldwide marketing agreement for the payment system with Nokia.

About earthport

earthport is an Internet payment infrastructure directly linked to the traditional banking system, a bridge that connects the banking world and the Internet to let banking, telco and portal communities move money around the world quickly, securely and cheaply via any Internet-enabled device.

A registered user has their own personal e-wallet that is accessible at all times from anywhere in the world. Like a physical wallet, earthport's server-side wallet holds a user's payment details, but it allows money to be spent on-line without communicating those details to the recipient. The user's funds remain in the banking system until the payee requests payment out of the funds shown as available in their earthport/partner branded wallet.

About Baltimore Technologies

Baltimore Technologies develops and markets security products and services to enable companies to develop trusted, secure systems for e-business, the Internet and mobile commerce. Its products include a wide range of Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) products and services, wireless e-security solutions, cryptographic tool-kits, access control & authorisation, content security (MIMEsweeper products), security applications and hardware cryptographic devices. Baltimore's global professional services organisation offers a wide variety of consulting, training and deployment support to its customers worldwide. Baltimore Technologies markets and sells its solutions worldwide directly and through the TrustedWorld partner program. Baltimore TrustedWorld includes many of the world's leading technology companies and a wide variety of global, regional and local business alliance partners.

Baltimore Technologies employs more than 1,200 people worldwide and operates from over 38 cities, with headquarters in Dublin, Ireland; London, UK; Boston, USA; and Sydney, Australia. Baltimore Technologies plc is a public company with dual listings on NASDAQ (BALT) and the London Stock Exchange (BLM).