Navy Federal Credit Union the first U.S. Issuer to Offer MasterCard SecureCode Service to Cardholders - Delivered by TSYS, Powered by Cyota's SecureSuite Platform

Business Wire, Dec 16, 2002

Business Editors

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 16, 2002

Navy Federal's service is also the first commercial system

to combine MasterCard SecureCode and Verified by Visa

Navy Federal, the world's largest credit union, announced yesterday that it will be the first U.S. issuer to offer MasterCard(R) SecureCode(TM) to its cardholders.

Navy Federal's "CardGuard" service is also the first live system to combine MasterCard SecureCode and Verified by Visa as a single integrated service. Beginning December 16th, Navy Federal's 2.2 million members can sign up for CardGuard protection. The service is delivered by TSYS and powered by Cyota's SecureSuite platform, the leading payment platform in the market, which seamlessly integrates MasterCard SecureCode and Verified by Visa.

"Navy Federal is taking advantage of the latest technology to protect cardholders and make Web purchases more secure than ever," said Tom Steele, Navy Federal's Vice President of Credit Cards. "Even if a member never shops online, CardGuard provides additional protection in case your card is lost or stolen and someone tries to use it to make online purchases."

Navy Federal's CardGuard uses MasterCard SecureCode and Verified by Visa to authenticate cardholders during online transactions at participating merchants. The service requires cardholders to enter their private password in a pop-up window or box on their PC before their online transaction can be approved and completed--much like the familiar PIN process required for use at an ATM. With this extra step, members can be confident that their account is protected, and Navy Federal and merchants gain greater assurance about the identity of the person completing the transaction.

"TSYS fully supports these fraud prevention measures from MasterCard and Visa to assure that processing clients like Navy Federal and their cardholders will continue to have access to world-class protection against identity theft," says Andrew W. Marks, group executive at TSYS, "Because SecureSuite integrates the best technologies from both associations, Cyota ideally helps us reach that goal."

TSYS, which supports more than 240 million cardholder accounts internationally, has serviced Navy Federal's cardholder accounts since 2000 when the credit union converted its portfolio to the TS2 processing system. TSYS offers Cyota's SecureSuite platform in combination with a comprehensive fraud services system, which it provides to Navy Federal and more than 100 processing clients in North America and Europe.

Cyota's SecureSuite platform is designed to support a wide range of authentication and card security products including MasterCard SecureCode and Verified by Visa and surrogate numbers. The platform has been implemented by some of the world's largest financial institutions. Cyota currently powers 80% of all Visa cardholder accounts that are eligible for Verified by Visa in the U.S.

"Cyota is delighted to pioneer the market once again, with the first global SecureCode live system," commented Naftali Bennett, Cyota CEO and President, "Cyota is clearly the leading provider of MasterCard SecureCode and Verified by Visa in the world."

About Navy Federal Credit Union

Navy Federal is the world's largest credit union, with more than $17 billion in assets and 2.2 million members worldwide. The credit union serves most military and civilian personnel of the Navy and Marine Corps and their families. Headquartered in Vienna, Virginia, Navy Federal operates 96 member service centers and 259 proprietary ATMs worldwide.

About TSYS

TSYS (NYSE: TSS) (www.tsys.com) brings integrity and innovation to the world of electronic payment services as the integral link between buyers and sellers in this rapidly evolving universe. Synovus (NYSE: SNV) owns an 81-percent interest in TSYS. For more information, contact news@tsys.com.

About Cyota

Cyota is the leading payment security provider for financial institutions. Cyota SecureSuite is the only integrated payment security platform, designed to seamlessly integrate a wide range of credit and debit card security solutions including MasterCard SecureCode and Verified by Visa, surrogate numbers and more, into a single, consistent and cost-effective solution. Cyota services multiple clients in North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific with systems currently available to over 300 million cardholders. Founded in 1999, Cyota is headquartered in New York with offices worldwide. Cyota is led by a respected management team with extensive experience in the security, Internet and banking industry. For more information please visit www.cyota.com