MCAFEE JOINS THE GOVERNMENT OF CANADA’S DIGITAL INCLUSION
PARTNERSHIP FOR HOMELESSNESS
CAMBRIDGE, ONTARIO, July 24, 2007
The Government of Canada announced today that McAfee, Inc., a leading dedicated
security company, has committed to supporting efforts to reduce and prevent homelessness
in Canada by joining the Digital Inclusion Partnership (DIP) for Homelessness,
which aims to meet the software, hardware, and technical support needs of shelters
and service providers. In addition, the DIP for Homelessness provides homeless
people with access to a variety of support services so they can become active
members of their community.
Gary Goodyear, Member of Parliament for Cambridge, on behalf of the Honourable
Monte Solberg, Minister of Human Resources and Social Development, joined Danielle
Fournier, Canadian General Manager, McAfee, to make the announcement today at
the Cambridge Shelter, one of the homeless shelters benefiting from these resources.
“Through the power of partnerships, such as the one we see here today between
the Government of Canada and McAfee, we are supporting the work of shelters and
service providers across Canada,” said Mr. Goodyear. “I would like
to commend McAfee for being part of a growing list of private organizations that
are taking an active role in their community.”
Through the Digital Inclusion Partnership, McAfee will donate security technology
and expertise to 450 homeless shelters across Canada in order to ensure the protection
of sensitive information on clients and operations. McAfee’s technology
contribution includes subscriptions for the shelters to McAfee VirusScan®
Plus, which includes anti-virus, firewall and other security features, to help
protect the critical information from the latest cyber threats.
“At McAfee, we are committed to being a responsible corporate citizen by
partnering with government agencies and other organizations to address broader
societal issues,” said Danielle Fournier of McAfee. “Efforts to reduce
and prevent homelessness in Canada include systems to collect sensitive information
about homeless individuals and families from shelters across the country. McAfee,
through our McAfee Cares program, hopes to make a difference in Canada by contributing
our technology and expertise to the shelters in order to help keep that sensitive
information safe from cyber threats.”
"As a non-profit agency serving homeless individuals and families in Cambridge,
we rely on community and corporate partnerships to help us deliver services and
programs to assist our clients in moving forward,” said Anne Tinker, Executive
Director of the Cambridge Shelter. “McAfee is to be commended for the significant
contribution they have made to our shelter, and to other shelters across Canada
through the Digital Inclusion Partnership for Homelessness. We are extremely grateful
for their support."
The DIP was developed by the Homeless Individuals and Families Information System
(HIFIS) Initiative, a component of the Homelessness Partnering Strategy (HPS).
The HIFIS Initiative is a data development initiative focussing on the collection
and analysis of data relating to shelter use in Canada. Such baseline data is
required in order to measure progress that communities are making in the reduction
of homelessness.
The DIP now consists of McAfee, Microsoft Canada, Industry Canada’s Computers
for Schools, TelecomPioneers of Canada, and the HIFIS Initiative of HPS.