DigitalPersona Teams With VeriSign to Deliver Secure Biometrics Support
Fingerprint Recognition Technology Further Secures User Identities And Simplifies Use of PKI
REDWOOD CITY, Calif., June 12 /PRNewswire/ — DigitalPersona, Inc., a leading provider of secure biometric solutions, today announced that it has teamed with VeriSign, Inc. (Nasdaq: VRSN) to advance the use of biometric authentication as part of VeriSign’s managed PKI services for enterprise customers. DigitalPersona’s U.are.U(R) Pro System is the first biometric authentication solution to include support of the latest release of VeriSign’s Personal Trust Agent (PTA), a lightweight, client-side agent that enables user-friendly certificate management, client authentication, and digital signatures. U.are.U Pro includes Windows(R) software and an intelligent USB fingerprint sensor that will allow customers to securely access their digital certificates with the touch of their finger.
Today, most businesses use passwords or tokens for user authentication and access. This can create security and support problems for managers who must rely on users to maintain security and remember passwords. U.are.U Biometric Authentication Solutions replace passwords (something you know) with a biometric (who you are). This provides a much higher level of security and authentication. When users attempt to access a secure resource, the DigitalPersona screen will ask the user to touch the finger sensor, enabling access to the digital certificates and associated private keys secured by the PTA.
“U.are.U is a perfect complement to VeriSign’s Personal Trust Agent,” said Fabio Righi, President and CEO of DigitalPersona. “As a result of our collaboration, customers will enjoy heightened security and simplified access to VeriSign’s managed PKI services.”
U.are.U Pro is a secure biometrics solution that protects the authentication process from end-to-end. The intelligent sensor includes encryption and challenge-response technology. VeriSign’s Personal Trust Agent, part of its Go Secure!(SM) for Web Applications, a suite of plug-and-play components that accelerate the process of securing web-based applications, has been recently upgraded to include a vendor-neutral Application Programmer’s Interface (API) to enable biometric authentication support.
“We believe that the improved security and convenience gained with biometric authentication will help accelerate PKI adoption in high security applications in the enterprise,” said Bob Pratt, Director of Product Marketing for VeriSign. “It also provides strong assurance of the actual person behind the transaction.”
With the completion of this collaborative effort, DigitalPersona has now entered the VeriSign Partner Program for Developers as a Gold level partner. As part of the program, DigitalPersona will work with VeriSign to further integrate technology and to promote jointly developed solutions through advertising and events.
About DigitalPersona
DigitalPersona, developer of the innovative U.are.U(R) biometric security solutions, brings both heightened security and convenience to users. DigitalPersona has developed next generation fingerprint recognition hardware and software technology enabling market-ready solutions. With a user-friendly interface and the highest level of security for corporations, Internet, and home, users can now safeguard their digital accounts and information. Based in Redwood City, Calif., the company distributes its products through an extensive network of OEM, VAR, reseller and retail channels and has attracted strategic partnerships with major computer and peripheral manufacturers. Third party developers also are selling the product into medical, legal, finance/banking, retail/POS and access control markets.
DigitalPersona’s award-winning U.are.U biometric security solutions include U.are.U Online for the Internet, U.are.U Pro for corporate networks and U.are.U Deluxe for home and office computers. Each solution is designed to confirm an individual’s identity and protect access to sensitive information, while reducing the high costs associated with password management. U.are.U has received numerous awards, including the “Editor’s Choice” award from PC Magazine and Network Computing and the “Best of Comdex” award from PC Week.
NOTE: U.are.U(R) and DigitalPersona(TM) are the property of DigitalPersona, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.