Saflink adds proximity card support to biometric smart card reader
21 June, 2006
category: Biometrics, Corporate, Government
Saflink’s SureAccess all-weather biometric smart card reader that’s FIPS 201-compliant, supports both prox and biometric smart cards, providing businesses with a more flexible alternative to an all-at-once, rip and replace strategy for upgrading from proximity cards to biometrically enabled smart cards.
KIRKLAND, Wash.– Saflink Corporation, a leading provider of solutions that verify identity and secure access, announced that SureAccess, an all-weather, biometric, smart card reader that reduces the threat of unauthorized access to critical facilities, now supports proximity cards. Designed to meet the strict requirements of the Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS) 201 and the Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC), SureAccess enables workers to use the same smart card to gain entry at multiple sites. The reader’s dual functionality enables businesses to maintain existing proximity card access control systems while simultaneously issuing biometric smart cards to users.
“Rolling out biometric smart cards to a large user population across disparate offices can take a considerable amount of time and expose a company to unnecessary risk,” said Tim Miller, President of Accutech Systems, a Saflink reseller. “SureAccess’s flexible support for access control cards means that our customers won’t need to make interim security arrangements during the transition, such as adding security guards. More importantly, this approach ensures security is status quo until the deployment is complete.”
The SureAccess reader is based on the same contactless biometric smart card technology currently deployed in the Transportation Security Administration’s (TSA) TWIC program, a security initiative designed to increase security at U.S. transportation modes. The reader has also been deployed at the State of Florida’s Seaport Gate Control Project, a program designed to enhance physical access security at the state’s 12 deepwater seaports. The reader is a solution in a family of products designed to meet the strict requirements of the National Institute of Standards and Technologies’ (NIST) FIPS 201, also known as Personal Identity Verification (PIV) for federal employees and contractors.
“SureAccess’s dual support for both proximity cards and biometric smart cards provides businesses with a more flexible alternative to an all-at-once, ‘rip and replace’ strategy for upgrading from proximity cards to biometrically enabled smart cards,” said Mike Grady, Saflink Executive Director – Business Development. “This new feature allows our customers to enhance security policies over time with minimum impact on users and workflow.”
SureAccess products are showcased in the Saflink FIPS 201 evaluation lab in Reston, Virginia. For more information about SureAccess, please contact Saflink at 877-241-4717.
About Saflink
Saflink Corporation offers biometric security and smart card solutions that protect intellectual property and secure access. Saflink identity assurance solutions verify the identity of users and control their access to computer networks, physical facilities and applications. Winner of seven awards in 2005, Saflink and its solutions have been recognized by organizations such as Frost & Sullivan and Software Magazine’s Software 500. For more information, please visit www.SAFlink.com or call 800-762-9595.
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