by Zack Martin, Editor, Avisian Publications

President Obama wants people to be better secured when using the Internet. The rising costs and concerns over identity theft as well as weak cybersecurity have caused the president to task a group with finding solutions to the online identification problem.

Obama’s group, the National Strategy for Secure Online Transactions, may eventually recommend ways for consumers to be vetted, some type of background check, and a technology they can use for better security when conducting business online.

The president wants consumers to use strong authentication, something more than user name and password, which will most likely add another security factor, say officials familiar with the project. 

Cryptography Research, Inc. has agreed to grant Toshiba Corp. use of their patents to enhance and expand its security products. Toshiba’s tamper-resistant products including smart cards, secure storage media and ASICs, work to protect systems against attacks such as Differential Power Analysis (DPA).

DPA attacks involve using advanced statistical methods to monitor the variable electrical power consumption of a device so that they may obtain cryptographic keys and other secrets embedded in the system. 

Luxemburg’s SeeZam S.A. has selected Entrust Inc. to deploy a three-tiered authentication solution to secure its online information service. Facilitated by the Entrust IdentityGuard authentication platform, SeeZam will use a combination of authenticators to manage access to an online application that secures personal information, legal documents and other sensitive data.

SeeZam’s online service is designed to provide a secure, centralized location to store critical information, particularly if the account holder passes away. It enables family members to have all the necessary tools for essential arrangements and asset distribution. The service secures some of the most private of documents, including wills, legal notices and life insurance policies. 

Dan DeBlasio, director of business development for identity and access management at HID Global, talks about the company’s risk-appropriate authentication product and how it works with HID’s logical access solutions. Corporations want to know what they can do with their existing badge without having to re-card, including adding logical access features as well. DeBlasio also talks about HID’s “identity on demand” product that enables corporations to securely send employee ID information to a service bureau to have credentials formatted and delivered.

Two USB flash drives with approximately 26,000 students’ information stored on them were stolen from a Washoe County School District office during a recent burglary, according to a Washoe news report.

A spokesman for the school district’s office said from now on the school district will make sure all information on any flash drives is encrypted so it is not accessible if it does end up in the wrong hands. 

After several months of planning, a partnership between Arcot Systems Inc. and Japanese IT solutions provider, Sumisho, releases Arcot A-OK On Demand solutions to Japan’s market.

As the second largest IT market in the world, Japan’s Sumisho Computer Systems Corporation (SCS) will deliver sales, marketing support and training to companies looking to acquire A-OK On Demand. 

The latest version of VASCO Data Security’s DIGIPASS authentication solution has hit the market. The DIGIPASS Pack for Remote Authentication now includes a DIGIPASS for Mobile software which enables mobile phones to double as an authentication device.

This service will utilize one-time passwords (OTP) and digital signatures powered by VASCO’s IDENTIKEY authentication server.