August 18, 2004 (Orlando, FL)- The first big storm of the season, Hurricane Charley, roared through the central part of Florida last Friday, devastating miles of power lines, businesses, and residential areas. The storm was the biggest that Central Florida has seen since Hurricane Donna intruded more than four decades ago. As a result of the category 4 hurricane, a complete loss of power affected more than 700,000 residents and businesses in the Greater Orlando area, including the corporate headquarters of Worldwide Interactive Services, Inc.

In most cases, businesses took a big hit, shutting them down or putting them temporarily out of service. While the corporate offices were closed due to power failure, production at Worldwide Interactive Services, Inc. remained opened. Production sustained an impressive 100%, giving clients complete access to their data and our internet, voice and wireless services.

Disasters like the recent storm and mass power outages are the driving forces behind Worldwide’s implementation of a co-location facility. Power was lost at both corporate headquarters and at the co-location facility, where the main production environment is located. In contrast, while the Worldwide Companies facility remained off-line and out of service, the co-location facility was able to sustain Worldwide’s services with an advanced uninterrupted power source (UPS) system. This system is built with redundant security: starting with an emergency power source for each individual system, to a team of massive diesel generators that will power the whole building for over a week before refueling.

In the week before the storm, the operation specialists at Worldwide ran a semi-annual test of the disaster recovery plan, which is guided by the SAS 70 requirements. During the test, operation specialists were able to verify the capability of the plan, and anticipate production success during a disaster. As a result of this precaution, Worldwide was prepared for Hurricane Charley, and confident that all services would remain on-line and in production.

For more information about Worldwide’s Disaster Recovery Plan, please contact your account representative at 888.596.4947.

About Worldwide Interactive Services, Inc.

Through Voice, Wireless, and Internet applications, Worldwide Interactive Services, Inc. is a total service solution, offering high standards of service at a low cost. With a combination of both batch and real-time on-line services, WWIS meets the needs of any financial institution, with the most advanced products and services on the market.