Computerworld Innovative Technology 2002 Awards Name Fortinet 'Best' In Networking Category

Market Wire, 20050229

In a customer-nominated competition showcasing "leading-edge technology products or services that provide measurable payback," Computerworld magazine named Fortinet 'Best of the Rest' in the Networking category for its FortiGate Series of Network Protection Gateways (NPGs), highlighting their ability to "protect against network-borne threats to security and productivity."

Computerworld received approximately 200 nominations for its first-annual "Innovative Technology 2002 Awards," and out of those, selected only 10 main winners, and only two honorable mentions in the Networking category, Fortinet and Foundry Networks. Computerworld verified customer nominations by phone and then surveyed chosen vendors, asking specific questions about the nominated technology. Those surveys were first vetted by a panel of Computerworld editors and then divided among a 15-person panel of IT influencers for evaluation.

"We're honored to receive this award from such a prestigious publication and distinguished panel of IT experts, further validating our product and technology value proposition," said Richard Kagan, vice president of marketing at Fortinet. "Our FortiGate network protection systems offer a new added layer, sort of a double dead-bolt at the virtual front door of corporate Internet traffic, that protects the security and productivity of networked organizations of all types and sizes."

Evaluations for the Computerworld Innovative Technology 2002 Awards were based on the following criteria:

*The company's technology is innovative and original.

*It offers demonstrable value to corporate IT operations in Fortune 1,000 companies.

*It creates a new advantage or opportunity for customers.

*Customers have successfully implemented the technology and are getting measurable payback or competitive advantage from it.

*The technology will continue to change the way companies do business or solve technology problems into the future.

About Fortinet

Fortinet, the premier provider of network protection systems and the only ICSA-certified ASIC-based antivirus solution, enables enterprises and service providers to improve the security of their networks, reduce misuse and abuse, and better utilize network resources without compromising performance--at dramatically lower costs. Fortinet's industry-leading FortiGate Series of NPGs breaks the Content Processing Barrier, delivering application-level services such as virus protection and content filtering along with firewall, VPN, intrusion detection, and traffic shaping functions as high-performance network services in dedicated, easily managed platforms. The FortiGate Series is powered by Fortinet's patent-pending FortiASIC(TM) content processing engine, providing the first and only systems with ASIC-accelerated, network-based antivirus protection. Fortinet is privately held and based in Santa Clara, Calif. The company's web address is www.fortinet.com.