Tumbleweed Granted New Patent For Secure Delivery

Tumbleweed Expands Patent Portfolio to Include a New Method of Server-Based Secure Delivery of Electronic Information

REDWOOD CITY, CA - October 24, 2002 - Tumbleweed® Communications Corp.(Nasdaq:TMWD - News), a leading provider of secure messaging applications for businesses using the Internet, today announced that it has been granted U.S. Patent No. 6,470,086 by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

The patent discloses a method of secure delivery of electronic information by encrypting the delivery with the public key of a server associated with the recipient (typically within the firewall of an enterprise), instead of encrypting the delivery with the public key of the intended recipient. The server decrypts the delivery using its corresponding private key, converts the delivery to a new data representation, and then either forwards it to the recipient inside the firewall, or re-encrypts it with the public key of an intended recipient outside of the firewall or with the public key of another server associated with the intended recipient.

Tumbleweed's patent portfolio includes 8 granted U.S. patents and 20 pending U.S. patent applications in addition to another 60 pending worldwide. The patent portfolio broadly covers secure communication, including the binding of content to electronic identity, over Internet standards.

About Tumbleweed
Tumbleweed is a leading provider of secure messaging applications for businesses using the 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 the U.S. 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.

The pro forma operating results are presented for informational purposes only as an alternative for understanding Tumbleweed's operating results. The pro forma results should not be considered a substitute for financial information presented in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, and may be different from pro forma measures used by other companies. Tumbleweed cautions that forward-looking statements contained in this press release are based on current plans and expectations, and that a number of factors could cause the actual results to differ materially from the guidance given at this time. These factors are described in the Safe Harbor statement below. 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 extent of Tumbleweed's patent portfolio. 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 29, 2002 and Form 10-Q filed August 14, 2002. Tumbleweed assumes no obligation to update information contained in this press release. Although this release may remain available on the Company's website or elsewhere, its continued availability does not indicate that the Company is reaffirming or confirming any of the information contained herein.