SANTA ROSA, Calif., April 8, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- YoHolla International has launched the first social network (YoHolla.com) designed to put the consumer in 100% control over who sees what they post online.  "Our mission is to provide an alternative, a social networking environment for those concerned about their privacy and safety online," said Jeffrey Wilhems, President and CEO. YoHolla is a subscription based service that provides an ad-free, safe and secure platform.  "We don't sell, trade or use your information for the benefit of advertisers, third party app developers, or even ourselves.  Our short and concise privacy policy says it all... YOU OWN YOUR DATA!" said Wilhems.

The YoHolla technology provides the user complete control over what gets shown and what doesn't.  From Hollas, to photos, videos and even each field of your profile, the user can select which members or groups can view their personal information.  In addition, YoHolla is run exclusively with the HTTPS protocol, the same technology used to encrypt your banking transactions.  "It is not enough to provide users a choice in this area like other offerings do," says Jeff Thompson, COO.  "In the other sites, I can post something to you that I want to keep completely private, and you walk into an internet cafe, login into your account over a non-private, HTTP connection and now that information isn't private anymore, and it is no longer in my control.  We work hard to make sure your data is safe!"

YoHolla even goes so far as to strip geo-location, or exif data from photos that are uploaded.  "Consumers do not realize that when they upload a photo from their phone to the internet, they are telling the bad guys: where they live, where their kids live, that they are on vacation in another country," said Thompson.

"Everyday another news story reports the consequences of people using unsecure social networks, whether it be identity theft, home burglaries, job loss or worse.  People need to wake up to the realities of what can happen by using supposedly 'free' social networks exploiting their personal information.  Unfortunately, those people are under the illusion that just because all of their friends are there, it must be safe.  I became an investor in YoHolla because I firmly believe that this is an important issue and evidence supports the notion of paying for a secure social network," said Brian Banmiller, Former KTVU and local Fox News Business Anchor, San Francisco Bay Area, CA.

YoHolla International was founded in May 2010 and was funded by Private Equity and Angel Investors with just over 3 Million Dollars. YoHolla is about to close another round of funding in the next few weeks, with the intent to launch a very aggressive national advertising and marketing campaign to create awareness and enroll members.

About YoHolla:

YoHolla is an advertising-free social network for anyone concerned with privacy and security. Unlike other social networking sites that exploit your personal information for ad dollars, YoHolla users own and control all their own data, and always will!

Media Contact: Katherine Hughes-  855-700-4001 x 1005 or Katherine@YoHolla.com

YoHolla International
2160 Northpoint Parkway
Santa Rosa, CA 95407
www.YoHolla.com

YoHolla® is a registered trademark of YoHolla International.  Other names may be trademarks of their respective owners.

SOURCE YoHolla