3M Cogent has announced the release of its new BioTrust biometric logon software developed to replace traditional usernames and passwords with biometrics.

The new software is designed for use with Microsoft’s Windows XP, Vista and Windows 7 operating systems and utilizes facial and fingerprint recognition to replace traditional means of a variety of logins. 

Munich-based Siemens AG has selected Verizon’s OmniRoot certificate chaining services to provide its global identity authentication.

The Verizon product authorizes Siemens’ in-house PKI and user identity certificates and intends to increase the security of its internal and external communications, as well as Web application delivery. 

Finnish wireless operators Sonera and Elisa have partnered to offer a mobile authentication and signature service to its subscribers.

Mobile authentication company Valimo provided its Mobile ID product for this offering, that lets the wireless subscribers create legally binding electronic signatures for applications such as internet banking, e-commerce and e-government products. 

Transverse LLC has announced four new enhancements in the June rollout of its TRACT SaaS usage-based rating and billing solution.

The new release incorporates SAML-based Single-Sign-On that enables TRACT users to connect to SaaS offerings. It allows users to connect cloud-based applications and establish a centralized identity management system within the cloud due to OASIS-defined SAML protocol and external identity and access management components. 

The Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council released new guidance for financial institutions on online customer authentication to accounts. The council first releases guidance in 2005 recommending a risk-based approach and telling institutions to provide periodic assessments in response to new threats.

The latest report reinforces those expectations. “Financial institutions should perform periodic risk assessments considering new and evolving threats to online accounts and adjust their customer authentication, layered security, and other controls as appropriate in response to identified risks,” the supplement states. “It establishes minimum control expectations for certain online banking activities and identifies controls that are less effective in the current environment. It also identifies certain specific minimum elements that should be part of an institution’s customer awareness and education program.” 

Ceelox has announced it has been issued a new patent by the U.S. Patent Office entitled “System And Method For Biometrically Secured, Transparent Encryption And Decryption.”

The patent, which relates to the technology behind a biometrically enabled encryption and decryption of digital files, is used in Ceelox’ Vault, a fingerprint-based file encryption manager for either computers or mobile devices. One of he key features of Vault that Ceelox touts is its ease of use with a drag and drop style of encrypting and decrypting where a file is simply dragged over the Vault icon to be prompted for a biometric sample to encrypt unencrypted files or decrypt encrypted files.  

VASCO Data Security International has expanded its CertiID Managed PKI services to be available globally.

VASCO’s recent acquisition of Dutch Internet trust provider DigiNotar provided the leverage needed to expand the CertiID product. As a Certificate Authority, DigiNotar will be able to manage the security process for VASCO’s Managed PKI clients.