Cigital's Secure Software Vision Reinforced by Microsoft's New 'Trustworthy Computing' Mandate.

DULLES, Va. -- Cigital, Inc. the Software Risk Management (SRM) solution provider that helps companies protect themselves from the business risks of software failure, reacted positively today to Microsoft Chairman and Chief Software Architect Bill Gates' call for Microsoft to improve software security and reliability. Ten years ago, Cigital foresaw businesses' growing reliance on software and began its mission to protect companies by proactively addressing their critical software risk.

"We are pleased that Microsoft is finally seeing the light," says Cigital Co-Founder and CEO Jeffery Payne. "When we started Cigital in 1992, we understood that software was working its way deeply into business and that it must work as expected. Since the beginning, we have been building technologies and delivering services that manage software risks, making software reliable, safe and secure. It is nice to see the world's largest software company begin to work on this critical problem."

Cigital's Professional Services Division -- including its Software Security Group -- has spent the past decade helping companies design and test software and manage their software-induced business risks. Cigital's software security experts have secured advanced software systems for the U.S. Federal Reserve, Visa International, MasterCard, Schlumberger, Pfizer and many other companies.

Cigital CTO Dr. Gary McGraw understands the critical need for more secure software. A recognized expert on software security, he co-authored a book on the subject last year. Building Secure Software: How To Avoid Security Problems the Right Way is the first book devoted entirely to software security. "Microsoft has caught lots of well-deserved flak for producing insecure software," says McGraw, who gave an invited talk on writing secure code at Microsoft in August 2001. "They have plenty of work ahead of them, and there is certainly room for improvement in many of their products. My hope is that other software producers will take a hard look at what they're doing and ask whether they need to concentrate on security and reliability as well. My bet is they do."

About Cigital

Headquartered in Northern Virginia, Cigital is a leading authority and industry visionary on Software Risk Management (SRM). Founded in 1992 on the simple, compelling premise that software must work, Cigital helps companies identify, analyze and reduce the risks of software failure-making their business operations and products more reliable, safe and secure. The Company delivers consulting services based on the Cigital Advantage(SM), a methodological approach to full lifecycle SRM that is grounded in research and proven in practice. The constant innovation of its world-renowned Cigital Labs keeps Cigital at the forefront of software development and deployment, helping to solve the problems that affect businesses today, and anticipate and avoid potential future trouble spots. With additional offices in Boston and Los Angeles, Cigital helps companies get their software under control so they can take charge of their business.

  Learn more about Cigital on the Web at http://www.cigital.com .
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Contact: Jen Norman, VP of Marketing of Cigital, Inc., [phone], or [e-mail]

Website: http://www.cigital.com/