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GetNetWise Fact Sheet

GetNetWise was created in 1999 by a group of industry leaders and public interest groups that recognized the need for a central, user-friendly resource that would provide information and tools about Internet safety and privacy issues. Their purpose in creating GetNetWise was to establish a unified consumer education campaign with a strong public message in order to ensure that computer users could experience the Internet in a safe and positive manner.

The GetNetWise site features four sections on relevant issues pertaining to consumer safety on the Internet, including: kid's safety, spam (unwanted commercial e-mail), privacy, and computer security. Each section contains precautionary tips, recommended tools, and suggested actions to take in the effort to combat cyber threats. Sections are further supplemented with video tutorials and real player movies that discuss what consumers can do to protect themselves from fraudulent Internet scams such as spyware, and spam.

The GetNetWise coalition wants Internet users to be only "one click away" from the resources they need to make informed decisions about their and their family's use of the Internet.

GetNetWise is a broad-based campaign managed and built by the Internet Education Foundation and is hosted by some of the most recognized names on the Internet today, including DELL Inc., AT&T, Microsoft and Verizon. GetNetWise is supported by a steering committee made up of the following leading organizations: America Online, American Library Association, Amazon.com, Center for Democracy & Technology, Comcast, Earthlink, Inc., Recording Industry Association of America, Visa USA, Wells Fargo, Yahoo!, Council of Better Business Bureaus and TRUSTe, and advised by a diverse advisory board. For more information, please contact Allison Rodway at 202-638-4370 or visit the GetNetWise site at http://www.GetNetWise.org.