June 5, 2001 – TRUSTe today advises the community that it has ordered Aveo to immediately remove the TRUSTe Privacy Seal from its Web site. TRUSTe issued the order due to Aveo's failure to comply with the annual re-certification requirements of the TRUSTe Privacy Seal program.

Last week, TRUSTe directed its legal counsel to send an immediate cease-and-desist notice to Aveo. As of June 4, 2001, Aveo has failed to comply with the order. As a result of the fraudulent display of the TRUSTe Privacy Seal, visitors to the Aveo Web site are given the false impression that the company is in compliance with the TRUSTe Privacy Seal program.

According to its Web site privacy statement, Aveo states "We maintain a list behind our corporate firewall of the Press, Analysts, and customers who have access to Aveo sensitive information. This list will never be shared outside of Aveo." According to the Aveo Web site, the company claims to be a Santa Clara, CA-based technology help desk service. The company boasts that it signs 10,000 new users per day, allowing its corporate customers to deliver highly targeted advertising.

Despite repeated attempts to contact Aveo representatives, TRUSTe has not received any response from the company. TRUSTe will continue to keep the community apprised of any new developments in this case and take appropriate actions to protect consumers from privacy violation.

###

 

AppLabs Technologies