When deploying a physical access control system in a high-end building that will host celebrity visitors there’s a balancing act between making the system easy to use and secure. This is what AMAG Technology is facing when it comes to deploying the system at 10 Hudson Yards in New York City, the first office tower […]

HID Global tapped for multi-factor authentication project in Poland; the latest government smart card predictions; Cross Match available via UK’s G-Cloud CloudStore; SeureKey and Oberthur Technologies partner on mobile identity initiative and Gemalto supporting African health project.

Hardware security modules are the best when it comes to securing cryptographic keys. The secure, tamper-resistant pieces of hardware store cryptographic keys and provision encryption, decryption, authentication and digital signing services. These modules traditionally come in the form of a plug-in card or an external device attached directly to a computer or network server. They are essential to manage and provide protection for transactions, identities and applications.

National ID cards got a boost with the announcement that Estonia – a tiny Baltic state that’s home to 1.3 million people – will begin issuing digital IDs to non-residents this year. Citizens there have gone largely digital in their day-to-day dealings with private businesses and the public sector.

Physical security professionals are having to make tough decisions. These decisions are being driven by the need to offer value and become more than just a corporate cost center. Physical access control systems need to reduce risk and cost, increase efficiency and add value. They also need to collect better intelligence and enable collaboration with other departments for improved incident response and remediation. By using systems that adhere to standards, end users can make it easier to add to systems down the road as well as upgrade and change system.

A U.S. Senate Appropriations Subcommittee approved $249 million for the Office of Biometric Identity Management; the Dutch government selected Morpho to develop a secure biometric travel documents and identity cards; Verizon Enterprise Solutions introduced a new service called “Smart Credential,” a cloud-based system will offer a converged credential to the enterprise through a pay-as-you-go subscription model.

Norway Post deployed a multi-application smart card for an employee ID. The credential is used for physical access, discounts on railways, payments in canteens and access to vehicles. It’s also being used for secure printing and scanning in the office as well as time and attendance.