BeCrypt Opens US office
Annapolis, MD & Berkshire, UK BeCrypt, the UK’s largest encryption specialist, today opened its US operations to provide encryption products to the North American market. BeCrypt’s range of high-level full disk encryption products for PCs, laptops, PDAs and removable media devices are already used by more than 200 government and commercial enterprises across Europe to protect sensitive, restricted and confidential information.
BeCrypt is the first British company to join the Chesapeake Innovation Center (CIC), a business incubator focused on technology for the homeland security and defence sectors. Co-sponsored by the National Security Agency (NSA) and the Anne Arundel Economic Development Organization, the CIC will support and strengthen BeCrypt’s push into both government and commercial organisations in North America.
“Data security is critical to the operations of the defense and homeland security sectors,” said Peter Jaco, President & CEO of BeCrypt Inc. “From first responders to immigration officers, it is essential that data is secured to the highest degree, whether that information sits on a server or an individual’s laptop. When dealing with citizens’ personal details or official records, any leak is serious and could jeopardise individual or national security. We can eliminate that risk, enabling organisations to centrally control, implement and enforce security policies with our range of enterprise encryption products.”
BeCrypt’s PDA Protect and Disk Protect products have been certified by the Communications Electronics Security Group (CESG), the UK Government’s Information Assurance facility at Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ). BeCrypt has received Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS) Cryptographic Algorithm Validation Certificates for its Crypto Library from the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and will be working towards full FIPS 140-2 and Common Criteria certifications.
“BeCrypt is a British success story that is now in a strong position to help North American organisations,” said Terry Shear, the Vice Consul of Trade, UK Trade & Investment at the British Embassy in Washington, DC. “It is a significant milestone for the first British company to be brought into the Chesapeake Innovation Center. The launch of BeCrypt Inc. is timely, and brings important encryption technology into the US defence, homeland security and commercial sectors.”
BeCrypt aims to hire several new employees within the next year to establish the US operations, based in Anne Arundel County, MD. The Greater Washington Initiative (GWI), the regional economic development marketing organisation for the Washington area, provided BeCrypt with strategic support and advice in helping to establishing its US business.
“We are delighted to welcome BeCrypt to the Greater Washington Area and pleased to support a company of this calibre with its American launch,” said Tim Priest, GWI Interim Managing Partner. “We like to encourage British companies expanding into the US and wish BeCrypt every success with this venture.”
“BeCrypt’s extensive customer base in Europe proves the value of its encryption technology,” said John Elstner, CEO of the Chesapeake Innovation Center. “There is a vast need for the company’s technology in North America and the CIC hopes to open doors for BeCrypt with our corporate and government partners. At the CIC we believe in opening doors to the Prime Contractors and Government organisations such as the National Security Agency and Department of Homeland Security for leading technology companies and BeCrypt fits the bill.”
About UK Trade & Investment
UK Trade & Investment is the British Government’s international business development agency, supporting companies in the UK doing business internationally and overseas enterprises seeking to establish a market footprint in the UK. The integrated services offered by UK Trade & Investment bring together a network of business sector specialists and support teams in over 200 British embassies and Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) posts overseas, as well as key experts in government departments across the UK. For more information visit: www.uktradeinvestusa.com
About the Chesapeake Innovation Center
The CIC harnesses the power of entrepreneurship to help our nation enhance its technological edge. A public-private partnership initiated by the Anne Arundel Economic Development Corporation, the CIC is America’s first business accelerator focused on homeland and national security. The Center brings together its member companies — start ups with innovative technologies — with its partners — large enterprises with requirements for security-related high technology. CIC member companies produce everything from an anthrax treatment to software that replaces the computer password. Its partners include the National Security Agency, Bearing Point, Next Century Corp. and Innovent Nokia. Among its corporate sponsors are ARINC, Sturn Wagner Lombardo & Company, Kelly FedSecure, Piper Rudnick, and Whiteford Taylor and Preston.
www.cic-tech.org
About the Greater Washington Initiative
The Greater Washington Initiative (GWI) is the regional economic development marketing organization that promotes the area encompassing the District of Columbia, Northern Virginia and Suburban Maryland as a premier business location. GWI is an affiliate of the Greater Washington Board of Trade (www.bot.org.) For more info, visit www.greaterwashington.org
About BeCrypt
BeCrypt Limited was formed in 2001 to meet the growing demand for high-level computer encryption products in the international government and corporate marketplace. The company is now the UK’s largest specialist encryption software company and is a leading provider of enterprise encryption and security products designed to fully protect all corporate data. BeCrypt products protect customers in a number of key UK government areas including: central and local government, the military and defence sector, law enforcement and transportation. The company also services the commercial sector with key customers in financial services, pharmaceutical, insurance and banking sectors.
BeCrypt’s DISK Protect and PDA Protect products have been designed to meet stringent government security standards and have been approved by the UK Government’s Information Assurance group, the Communications Electronics Security Group (CESG) within GCHQ. This approval ensures BeCrypt products have met the needs of Government level security policy and standards without compromising usability.
BeCrypt has won an award from the Department of Trade and Industry for innovative technology and has patents pending on a number of unique encryption technologies.