Electronic Tax Filing Made Legally Enforceable With Time Signing By Symmetricom Trusted Time Division

Symmetricom - Trusted Time Division (TTD), a division of Symmetricom (Nasdaq: SYMM), the leading provider of secure time management solutions that manage the integrity of time in digital business processes, today announced that it has partnered with Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ) Hungary Ltd. (HP) and its partner Noreg Ltd. to implement Hungarys new online tax filing system. Using technology provided by Symmetricom-TTD, the Hungarian Tax Authority (APEH) can now digitally encode legally enforceable time stamps into tax documents it receives from filers online.

Hungary, like most countries, has strict deadlines for when tax forms must be submitted and imposes penalties when these deadlines are violated. Because of Symmetricoms time signing technology, APEH can now provide irrefutable evidence of when online tax filings are submitted.
Following a test pilot period in the last quarter of 2002, APEH began implementation in January 2003 of monthly online tax submissions.

Time stamping is a vital part of Hungarys online tax filing system," stated Attila Bartfai, Security Manager with HP Services, the group responsible for the project. We welcome the participation of Symmetricom as an HP partner in this important project."

The time stamp is considered to be legally enforceable because the source of the time is audited and certified by an internationally recognized standards body. Legal enforceability demonstrates three elements: 1) that the time stamp is accurate, 2) that it has not been tampered with, and 3) that the content of the document has not been changed since the time stamp was attached.

This project clearly demonstrates the importance of applying trusted, verifiable time stamps to online financial documents," stated John Bernardi, Executive Vice President and General Manager of Symmetricom -TTD. We are extremely pleased to have provided HP and the Government of Hungary with everything they need to issue legally enforceable time stamps."

Everything from a Single Source

The ability to issue legally enforceable time stamps requires two fundamental pieces of technology — both of which Symmetricom -TTD provided to HP: a time stamp server and a secure time distribution infrastructure.

HP implemented Symmetricoms Trusted Time StampServer at the APEH. The StampServer is a standalone network appliance that provides secure and auditable time stamping for any application, transaction, or log. Based on a cryptographic processor, it offers a FIPS-140-1 level-4 rating — meaning that the StampServer is protected against both virtual and physical attacks.

To be legally enforceable, the time recorded by the StampServer must be acquired from a source known to be accurate and over an infrastructure known to be secure. The Trusted Time StampServer acquires time via a time certification service through cryptographic links to an official UTC (Universal Coordinated Time) source. The service provides an independent, authorized calibration and audit capability ensuring that the StampServer remains synchronized to UTC.

About HP

HP is a leading global provider of products, technologies, solutions and services to consumers and businesses. The companys offerings span IT infrastructure, personal computing and access devices, global services and imaging and printing. HP completed its acquisition of Compaq Computer Corporation on May 3, 2002. More information about HP is available at
http://www.hp.com.

About Symmetricom - Trusted Time Division (TTD)

Located in Lexington, Massachusetts, Symmetricom - Trusted Time Division (TTD) is the leading provider of secure time management solutions that manage the integrity of time in digital business processes for the Information Technology market. The Division is backed by the financial and technological resources of Symmetricom, Inc. (Nasdaq: SYMM) of San Jose, CA.
Secure, accurate and auditable time plays a key role in the digital integrity of all organizations. The Trusted Time Division offers a range of secure time management solutions from time stamping of digital records to the secure synchronization of systems and network components. Additional information is available at http://www.trusted-time.com.