News
TriCipher is First to Transfer Smart Card Level Security to Federally Approved SAFE-BioPharma
TriCipher, the strong authentication company, has created the first SAFE-BioPharma(TM) "roaming" credential to be accepted by the U.S. Federal Public Key Infrastructure Policy Authority (FPKIPA), the interagency body that enforces digital certificate standards for trusted identity authentication across the federal agencies and between federal agencies and outside organizations.
In the past, companies had to designate specific computers that could be
used for digital signing, install smart card readers, and distribute smart
cards to authorized users -- an incredibly rigid (and costly) approach.
For the first time, private companies can quickly authenticate employees'
identities through roaming credentials, which do not require software or
hardware installation or administrative privileges on specific computers.
Available through TriCipher ID Tool ToGo(TM), roaming credentials enable users
to authenticate their identities and digitally sign business-critical
documents from any computer or Internet-enabled device -- easing one of the
biggest barriers to digital signing adoption.
"Distributed applications and users require flexible identity management
technologies such as roaming credentials," said Gerry Gebel, VP and service
director at Burton Group, an independent technology-industry analyst company.
"The pharmaceutical industry has very challenging collaboration and secure
document exchange requirements and has invested a great deal of time and
effort to improve their business process through technical innovation."
Roaming Credentials Eliminate Identity Barriers
Science Application International Corporation (SAIC) is the first to
deploy SAFE-BioPharma roaming credentials to the pharmaceutical and healthcare
industries using TriCipher's portable, cost-efficient ID Tool ToGo.
Pharmaceutical companies can now simply, securely and more affordably perform
electronic business transactions among one another and with government
agencies, such as the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) and National Cancer
Institute, part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
TriCipher's roaming credential enables SAFE-BioPharma members' employees
to securely log onto systems and digitally sign documents that require
multifactor authentication. SAFE-BioPharma members, which include Amgen,
AstraZeneca, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Genzyme, GlaxoSmithKline, Johnson &
Johnson, Merck, National Notary Association, Pfizer, Procter & Gamble, Roche,
Sanofi-Aventis and Schering-Plough Corporation, can perform essential
functions such as recording clinical trial results and submitting paperwork
for new drug documentation from any Internet connection.
"By enabling a mobile credential, TriCipher is simplifying identity
management and the ability to digitally sign electronic documents. Its
technology and the federal acceptance of SAFE-BioPharma's roaming digital ID
will significantly improve business processes in the biopharmaceutical and
healthcare industries and their communications with federal and international
agencies," said Mollie Shields-Uehling, president and CEO, SAFE-BioPharma
Association.
TriCipher's roaming credential gives users on any system Level 3
assurance, meaning that a high level of trust is established through strong
authentication using at least two independent authenticating factors. The
roaming credential leverages TriCipher ID Tool ToGo, unveiled last year as the
first portable, low-cost authentication solution that could be delivered on a
multi-use device. One part of the user's credential is generated from ID Tool
ToGo, and the other portion is stored on TriCipher's appliance behind the
scenes -- requiring only a standard USB drive with ID Tool ToGo to
authenticate. The credential aligns with the government's guidance in the
National Institute of Standards Technology (NIST) Special Publications
800-63-1 for Level 3 remote authentication, and meets the rigorous
requirements for a Federal Medium Assurance Commercial Best Practices identity
and digital signing credential.
"Authentication is following the typical pricing and availability trends
of other technologies, from limited and expensive to more flexible, convenient
and affordable," said John De Santis, TriCipher CEO. "TriCipher is leading
the industry past the peak costs, and making strong security expected and
achievable for organizations of all sizes in all markets."
About TriCipher
TriCipher, Inc. provides a unified authentication infrastructure to
protect web and enterprise portals, the people that use them and the business
process that flows through them against fraud and identity theft. The
TriCipher Armored Credential System(TM) (TACS) is the first authentication
system that enables companies to deploy and manage multiple types of
credentials from a single infrastructure. Through this flexible
"Authentication Ladder," TriCipher protects customer investment by adjusting
authentication strength to defeat new threats and to meet regulatory changes
without the need to implement a new infrastructure. Recently, TriCipher
introduced myOneLogin(TM) the first secure on-demand offering that delivers
strong authentication, single sign-on (SSO) convenience and the ability to
seamlessly integrate multiple Software as a Service (SaaS) applications in a
single solution. Founded in 2000, TriCipher is headquartered in Los Gatos,
Calif. The company is funded by ArrowPath Venture Capital, EPIC Ventures,
Intel Capital, RBC Technology Ventures, and Trident Capital. For more
information, visit TriCipher on the web at www.tricipher.com.