New student privacy regulations issued by the U.S. Department of Education enable universities to use ID numbers, but not Social Security numbers, in student directories as long as they can’t be used to access education records without another form of authentication, such as a password. In one proposal, regulators wanted to treat ID numbers like […]

By Guy Vancollie, Chief Marketing Officer, CoreStreet Since enterprises first looked at implementing smart card-based common access card programs in the 1990s, there have been many changes. Although some major companies have successfully deployed such programs, smart card-based identity solutions never have penetrated the enterprise market. Looking back, it is clear that a lack of […]

By Randy Vanderhoof, executive director, Smart Card Alliance Looking into the future of the North American smart card market in 2009 and 2010, I see no signs for concern, with the possible exception that the current recession could be far worse than previous economic downturns. Having been professionally engaged in the smart card industry since […]

Validity Sensors, a developer of biometric hardware, has announced that it will be supporting Microsoft’s Windows 7 Biometric Framework. The hardware used during a Microsoft demonstration of the framework at the WinHEC 2008 conferences was Validity’s VSF201 fingerprint sensor. Microsoft’s Biometric Framework is built to provide users with greater ease of integrating biometric devices into […]

By Joseph Pearson, marketing manager for government identification, Texas Instruments Electronic credentials ranging from passports to national ID cards are making next generation debuts in many parts of the world. The European Union is moving forward with electronic passports containing biometric fingerprint data for extended access control. Many countries are developing multi-purpose national ID cards […]

Bowdoin College students and faculty returning from winter break next month will be receiving a new ID card expected to increase on-campus security. The Brunswick, Maine school is in the process of converting to a new one-card system from campus card provider CBORD. The new card will serve as both the students’ ID card and […]

Salisbury District Hospital in the UK has won the 2008 Health Business Hospital Security Award for its SALTO Systems access control installation. The hospital decided to remove a system of codes and key control and replace it with SALTO’s electronic access control system that could provide it with audit trail information. SALTO’s XS4 locks of […]