Tumbleweed Provides Organizations A Simple Solution For Secure Online Communication

Tumbleweed Secure Public Network™ (SPN™) leverages email and S/MIME to enable secure Internet communication channels between organizations and their partners

REDWOOD CITY, CA - January 23, 2001 - Tumbleweed® Communications Corp. (Nasdaq:TMWD), a leading provider of mission critical messaging solutions, announced Tumbleweed Secure Public Network (SPN), a secure messaging solution using server-based S/MIME (Secure/Multi-purpose Internet Mail Extensions). Tumbleweed SPN integrates seamlessly with existing email networks to secure communications automatically, without organizations re-training end-users or changing desktop software.

S/MIME is the most frequently used email security standard. S/MIME requires an organization to issue each email user a digital certificate. However, issuing and managing individual digital certificates for each desktop computer and training end-users can be complicated and expensive for larger organizations.

By contrast, Tumbleweed SPN is a server-based S/MIME solution that integrates with existing email networks. No desktop software or desktop certificate management is required, nor is end-user training. Once the sender and receiver email networks are configured with Tumbleweed SPN, email communications are automatically encrypted before traveling over the Internet, and then authenticated and decrypted before reaching the recipient's desktop.

"Tumbleweed SPN takes down barriers. Companies have had to rely on costly, complex Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) to ensure secure communication with partners," said Jeffrey C. Smith, CEO and President, Tumbleweed Communications Corp. "Tumbleweed SPN transparently provides the same level of security by leveraging the public Internet, standard email and S/MIME. Because it builds on the Internet's reach, Tumbleweed SPN enables companies to easily bring an unlimited number of partners into a secure communication network at a lower cost than traditional VPNs."

About Tumbleweed Communications Corp.
Tumbleweed is a leading provider of solutions for managing secure communication and collaboration to enable the business Internet. Tumbleweed's robust policy-based framework empowers organizations to safely share and protect critical information, increase customer loyalty and privacy and dramatically reduce costs. Tumbleweed is trusted by 1,000 blue-chip customers including American Express, Chevron, Datek Online, the European Union's Joint Research Council, First Union Wachovia, John Deere, Merrill Lynch, Nike, Northern Trust, NTT, Salomon Smith Barney, Travelers and US Food and Drug Administration. One hundred of the Fortune 500 are Tumbleweed customers. Tumbleweed Communications was founded in 1993 and is headquartered in Redwood City, Calif., with offices around the world.

Except for the historical information contained herein, the matters discussed in this press release may constitute forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected, particularly with respect to the security features of Tumbleweed's products and the activities of any third party. In some cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "may," "will," "should," "potential," "continue," "expects," "anticipates," "intends," "plans," "believes," "estimates," and similar expressions. For further cautions about the risks of investing in Tumbleweed, we refer you to the documents Tumbleweed files from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission, particularly Tumbleweed's Form 10-K filed March 30, 2001 and Form 10-Q filed November 13, 2001. Tumbleweed assumes no obligation to update information contained in this press release.