FIPS 201 News
Episode 42: What's ahead for identity and the federal government?
2009 was when the discussion started on the problems with identity in the federal government began. Will 2010 be the year where solutions to these problems come to light? Regarding ID Editor Zack Martin spoke to Kelli Emerick, executive director of the Secure ID Coalition, to see what might happen in the new year with different ID projects.
SanDisk Cruzer USB drives meet federal government needs
SanDisk Corp., a provider of flash memory cards, announced that its SanDisk Cruzer Enterprise secure USB flash drives are now enhanced to meet the requirements of government employees. The Cruzer Enterprise design was independently tested and certified under Military Standard 810-F environmental standards in addition to being suitable for use by the visually-impaired under Section 508 requirements.
Cruzer Enterprise drives feature cryptographic modules and encryption algorithms, a waterproof design and are compliant with Trade Agreements Act requirements for purposes of U.S. Government procurements. In addition, the Cruzer Enterprise line of flash drives is listed for Common Criteria certification, which it is expected to receive next month.
ACS smart card reader receives FIPS 201 certification
ACS has announced that the ACR38 smart card reader has obtained FIPS 201 certification.
The approval of the reader enables the ACR38 to be used by federal agencies in their smart card applications such as physical access, network access and other authentication solutions. The FIPS 201 certification is a requirement of GSA for devices used in a smart card solution to ensure government-wide interoperability.
ACS also has unveiled the ACR38K Smart Keyboard. The ACR38K Smart Keyboard combines the smart card reader to a keyboard which enables convenience to implement smart-card-based systems or applications in the PC environment.
The keyboard has a ACR38 smart card reader module embedded and supports a variety of smart cards including ISO-7816 Class A, B and C cards as well as most of the common memory cards.
GSA accredits Atsec
Atsec information security has achieved General Services Administration FIPS 201 Evaluation Program Lab accreditation enabling the company to perform testing to determine conformance of products and services to FIPS 201 requirements on behalf of GSA.
This service is aimed at customers that want to sell their respective FIPS 201 compliant IT products and services to federal agencies.
Atsec is already an accredited laboratory under the National Voluntary Laboratory Accreditation Program for cryptographic module testing, and is accredited to conduct conformance testing of SCAP and Personal Identity Verification smart card applications and middleware under the National Institute of Standards and Technology Personal Identity Verification Program.
Atsec also operates fully accredited laboratories for Common Criteria testing under the U.S., German and Swedish national schemes.
GSA approves Athena's smart cards and middleware for PIV
Athena Smartcard Solutions, a developer of smart cards, announced that the Athena IDProtect Duo PIV, contact-contactless smart card was approved by U.S. General Services Administration for deployment in HSPD-12 programs.
The Athena IDProtect Duo PIV card incorporates FIPS 201 requirements and is listed on the U.S. General Services Administration Approved Product List. Products listed on the GSA APL may be purchased by government agencies. The Athena PIV supports Java Card 2.2.2 specifications and can carry 72KB of data including certificates and biometric data supporting both logical and physical access applications.
The Athena PIV card, developed and supported by Athena’s California development center, utilizes Atmel’s AT90SC12872RCFT dual interface secure microcontroller which is Common Criteria EAL5+ certified. CPI, a U.S.-based plastic card manufacturer, produces the card.
Episode 11: Government ID programs thrive thanks to industry standards
A conversation with GlobalPlatform’s Kevin Gillick
Around the globe, government ID leaders struggle with the myriad of standards determining which are key to their implementations. Host Chris Corum speaks with Kevin Gillick, Executive Director of the GlobalPlatform to learn how this not-for-profit industry group is helping agencies navigate these waters. International standards such as ISO, industry standards including GlobalPlatform specifications, and application standards like FIPS 201 are investigated.
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Cherry Products receive FIPS 201 certification
Four of Cherry Electrical smart card reader products have been granted FIP201 certification by the U.S. government. As a result, U.S. federal agencies and contractors are now authorized to use applicable Cherry keyboards and stand-alone smart card readers for logical access control under the Homeland Security Presidential Directive 12.
HSPD-12 requires the use of a common identification credential for both logical and physical access to federally controlled facilities and information systems. In response, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) published FIPS201 (Federal Information Processing Standard Publication 201), which specifies Personal Identity Verification (PIV) requirements for federal employees and contractors.
The applicable products are Cherry’s G83-6644 and G83-6744 keyboards with integrated smart card readers, its ST-1044U stand-alone smart card reader, and the SR-4044 PCMCIA smart card reader.
Paragon KVM receives FIPS 201 approval
Raritan recently announced that its Paragon II enterprise-class KVM solution, said to be the industry’s first to be offered with an optional integrated smart-card-reader, has achieved approval under FIPS 201 – the U.S. Federal government’s important standard that specifies Personal Identity Verification (PIV) requirements for Federal employees and contractors. The FIPS 201 approval has been granted under the category of “Transparent Card Reader.” Only FIPS 201-compliant card readers can be used in identity management systems for complying with the U.S. Homeland Security Presidential Directive (HSPD-12). The directive outlines a common identification standard for authenticating federal employee and contractor access, both physically and logically, to federal information systems.
Read the full article at SecureIDNews.com.
Nortel Government Solutions PIV integration system approved by GSA
Nortel Government Solutions has been approved by the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) as a provider of integration services for personal identity verification (PIV) systems compliant with Homeland Security Presidential Directive-12 (HPSD-12).
Read the full article at SecureIDNews.com.
New Datacard Group printers added to GSA Approved Product List
Datacard Group’s newly launched Datacard SP75 Plus and CP80 Plus card printers have recently appeared on the GSA Approved Product List (APL) for Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS) 201 card printer specification. The card printers personalize highly secure, durable cards and address the complex security issues associated with distributed issuance. Key security features include ultraviolet fluorescent printing, theft deterrent software and hardware, and the ability to apply the same or different security laminates to both sides of the card.
Read the full article at SecureIDNews.com.