DHS S&T Says Successfully Transfers Encryption System under Transition Program
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology (S&T) Directorate says that its has successfully transferred for the first time technology that it foraged under its Transition to Practice (TTP) program to the commercial market two years ahead of schedule. The agency identified a next-generation encryption system developed by Los Alamos National Laboratory that it introduced to commercial industry partners in 2013 and in Aug. 2014 was exclusively licensed by Allied Minds
, a science and technology development and commercialization company that has formed Whitewood Encryption Systems, Inc. to take new encryption technology to market. S&T says the transition to market is two years ahead of schedule. “We believe this technology will be beneficial to the nation’s security by creating encryption keys based on truly random numbers at high rates allowing for application of this technology in areas where it previously wasn’t feasible, says Mike Pozmantier, S&Ts Cyber Security Division TTP program manager. According to Allied Minds, Whitewood’s initial products will be based on Los Alamos’ technologies and will include a high-entropy, high-throughput quantum random number generator and a next-generation, scalable syste4m of quantum key management. “Whitewood aims to address one of the most difficult problems in securing modern communications: scalability, meeting the need for low-cost, low-latency, high security systems that can effectively service increasingly complex data security needs,” says John Serafini, vice president at Allied Minds. The TTP program was created in 2012 to support the DHS mission of improving the nation’s cyber security capabilities and to accelerate government funded research into widespread deployment. The program currently has 17 technologies ready for commercial transition and has selected seven more technologies to be introduced to commercial customers later this year, S&T says.
Cross Match Introduces Verifier Sentry Handheld
Cross Match Technologies has introduced the handheld, Android-based Verifier Sentry, which authenticates the identity of individuals using their secure credentials and biometrics. Cross Match says the new devices is suited for law enforcement, border control and immigration applications. Verifier Sentry reads a variety of credentials including TWIC, PIV, CAC and ePassports, as well as numerous state, local and national ID card formats. The device includes a single fingerprint sensor that can verify the credential holder’s ID by matching a biometric embedded in the credential to a live scan of a fingerprint. It can also capture personal identity verification-specified pictures for facial recognition. Verifier Sentry is offered with Commander, the company’s optional mobile device management tool that provides secure communications to the handheld and remote matching databases.
Advanced Optical Systems Introduces Contactless, On-the-Go Fingerprint Reader
TAMPA, Fla.—Advanced Optical Systems (AOS), an Alabama-based company new to the biometric sensor market, has introduced a contactless, stand-off sensor that reads fingerprints of people as they pass by the system without stopping. At a demonstration at the annual Global Identity Summit here, the ANDI OTG system captured and read the fingerprints of 107 people in two minutes as they walked past the sensor. The ANDI OTG features a 1 to 2 meter standoff sensor. For the demonstration, the people, most of whom walked through multiple times for AOS during the two minute interval, simply stretched out their right hand and passed it through a squared-notch large notch in a transparent panel where the sensor was targeted. A marketing flyer distributed by AOS says that ANDI can take eight fingerprints per user at walking speed, handling 30 users per minute. One system features two units, enabling capture of fingerprints on the right and left hands. The company is targeting airport and border security markets for large scale access control applications. The system works with any AFIS database, the company says. AOS says it plans to update the ANDI OTG system in the next few months into a smaller form factor. The FBI and Navy are testing the system, it says. AOS is also marketing the ANDI 200, which it says is a multimode, multilingual non-contact identity system that can read 10 fingerprints, do height assessment, facial recognition, and voice recognition at a 1 to 2 meter standoff range.
New FBI Identification System Achieves Full Operational Capability
The FBI’s next-generation biometric database has achieved full operational capability while also adding two new capabilities for law enforcement agencies, the bureau says. The Next Generation Identification (NGI) System expands the FBI’s existing biometric identification capabilities and provides greater accuracy and matching speeds. The FBI says that with the full operational capability, the NGI system is introducing two new services, Rap Back and the Interstate Photo System (IPS). Rap Back provides authorized users with the ability to receive ongoing status notifications of any criminal history reported on certain individuals such as school teachers. The capability also increases the effectiveness of law enforcement agencies and parole officers by providing updates on subsequent criminal activity of individuals being investigated or supervised. The IPS system is a facial recognition service that gives the law enforcement community an image-searching capability for photographs associated with criminal identities, representing “a significant step forward for the criminal justice community in utilizing biometrics as an investigative enabler,” the FBI’s Criminal Justices Information Services Division says. Lockheed Martin [LMT] is the prime contractor for the NGI system, which replaces the Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System.
GD Fidelis Boosts Capabilities of XPS Collector
General Dynamics [GD] says its Fidelis Cybersecurity Solutions business has improved its XPS Collector network security analytics solution with capabilities that enable security analyst to more quickly detect and remediate threats. “By providing advanced visualization and correlation capabilities, we’re making it much easier for analysts to determine the root cause of an attack, hunt down the threat actor in their network and fully understand the relationships between indicators of compromise and potential threats, helping customers identify malicious traffic faster and take action sooner,” says Tom Lyons, vice president of product management for GD Fidelis Cybersecurity Solutions. XPS Collector allows real-time automated application of threat intelligence to current and historical metadata, providing information needed to identify and react to malicious traffic.
Lockheed Martin Delivers Wingset for CBP P-3 Aircraft
Lockheed Martin [LMT] has delivered the 14th wingset for Customs and Border Protection’s (CBP) P-3 Orion maritime surveillance aircraft, the last wingset for 2014. Following the delivery, the P-3 wing line is being shut down temporarily and is scheduled to reactivate in early 2015 producing wingsets for Canada.
Aware Introduces Software for Text-Based ID Management and Analytics
Aware, Inc. [AWRE] has introduced a new software development kit called INQUIRE, which complements biometric search with text-based filter, search, match, and link algorithms. The company says that INQUIRE enables data integration, data quality analysis, identity resolution, fuzzy text search and match with similarity scoring, name and address matching, link analysis, and biometric pre- and post-search filtering. The software kit can be incorporated by developers into the workflows of their client- and server-based applications. It can also be deployed as a software module with Aware’s Biometric Services Platform. “The ability to interpret textual identity data adds a dimension of analysis that is powerful not only for discovery of insightful identity information, but also toward characterizing identity data and optimizing its effectiveness,” says David Benini, vice president of Marketing at Aware.
VidSys Introduces New PSIM Software
VidSys later this month will demonstrate its new 7.7 physical security information management (PSIM) software at the annual ASIS security conference. With 7.7, VidSys debuts National Language Support, which means the security management software can be adapted to various languages without code changes. VidSys, which is based in Northern Virginia, says it has grown its business this year internationally in Central and South America, the Middle East and the Asia Pacific region with both public and large private sector clients.