Covalent Technologies and Tripwire Forge Strategic Technology Alliance; Market Leaders to Deliver Integrated Solutions to Enhance the Integrity and Security of Apache Web Servers.

Business Editors, High-Tech Writers

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 30, 2001

Tripwire Inc., the leading provider of data and network integrity (DNI) solutions and Covalent, the leading provider of enterprise-quality Apache products services today announced a strategic technology alliance that will deliver enhanced data and network integrity solutions tailored for the Apache Web Server.

The companies will collaborate to develop and market new products that assure the integrity of the Apache web server and the web content that is presented by the web server.

This alliance comes at a time when the market is reeling from high profile computer security breaches and distributed denial of service (DDOS) attacks. These compromises threaten to erode the confidence of Internet users that are crucial to ensure the continued growth of e-commerce worldwide.

"We are very excited to kick off our co-development efforts with Tripwire," said John Jack, president and chief executive officer of Covalent. "They have delivered an impressive track record of success in the data and network integrity space. Together with our cast of Apache experts, we are confident that we can create new and much needed products for Apache in the enterprise."

"The Covalent name is synonymous with Apache expertise," said W. Wyatt Starnes, founder and CEO of Tripwire. "We are proud to be combining forces with them to create new products. Our data integrity expertise combined with Covalent's Apache know-how will result in powerful products for all enterprises demanding the best in Integrity and Web server technology."

Covalent and Tripwire expect to announce detailed product plans resulting from the alliance within the next two quarters. The co-development activities are a natural fit for the companies as they each bring a long history of open source and best-of-breed products in their areas of expertise:

-- Tripwire is the world's leading provider of data and network integrity (DNI)
monitoring and assurance software. DNI is emerging as a major market technology
and solution as corporations and government continue to invest in all layers of
enterprise protection. Tripwire recently returned to its open source roots by
issuing a General Public License (GPL) for its software for the Linux operating
system. Tripwire's products include the award-winning Tripwire Manager and
Tripwire for Servers.

-- Covalent is a leading provider of products and support services for the
Apache Web server. Its founders and engineering staff are among the original
developers of the Apache project. The company's product line includes Covalent
Secure Server, the only comprehensive security solution available for Apache.

"These are challenging times," stated Prashant Dubey, Vice President of Marketing & Business Development at Tripwire. "Major technology companies are falling victim to malicious as well as inadvertent system compromises. With more than 14 million Apache web servers in the market, it is crucial that organizations assure the integrity of these critical infrastructure items. Our goal is to deliver solutions that augment system integrity and therefore invoke confidence rather than skepticism in IT."

About Covalent Technologies, Inc.

Randy Terbush founded Covalent in 1998, one of the eight developers who created the Apache Web Server. Today Covalent is the leader in products and services for Apache. Through Covalent, Apache users receive all the flexibility and benefits of open source, with the support and reliability of a commercial enterprise fully dedicated to Apache. Funded by leading investors Sequoia Capital, etc, Covalent is the only company offering "enterprise-ready" support of Apache. Companies such as Lucent Technologies, Dow Jones and others depend on Covalent for their Apache Web Server infrastructure. More information about the company can be found at www.covalent.net.

About Tripwire, Inc.

Tripwire, Inc. is the leading provider of data and network integrity solutions for Global 3000 companies and e-business corporations as well as key public sector organizations. Tripwire enterprise software provides the foundation upon which security, network management and risk management strategies are built. It ensures that organizations can be confident in the integrity of all "data at rest" in their network -- source, destination and all stops in between. Tripwire customers include Intuit, AT&T, Ernst & Young and the U.S. House of Representatives. Tripwire is headquartered in Portland, Oregon with offices in Silicon Valley, California, and 15 countries around the world. For more information about Tripwire, please visit the company Web site at www.tripwire.com.

All Covalent product names are trademarks of Covalent Technologies. All other company and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.

Tripwire is a registered trademark of Tripwire Inc.