World’s first FIDO support for all standard smart card environments

o FIDO U2F & FIDO2 user authentication can be combined independently of smart cards used
o AirID2 combines PKI-Smartcard & FIDO authentication at the user “on the fly”
o Supports FIDO Alliance initiative for PIV Smartcard expansion of U.S. HSPD-12

Smart cards have been internationally recognized for security and protection in companies and authorities for many years – but also require supporting infrastructures. For this reason, the FIDO Alliance has developed simpler & open procedures for secure authentication. With the new AirID 2 readers, all smart card users will be able to use FIDO U2F and FIDO2 for authentication in the future – even completely independent of the smart cards used.

Nuremberg/Düsseldorf, March 11, 2019: certgate GmbH, one of the leading providers of secure mobile communication solutions and a member of the international FIDO Alliance for years, has announced the upcoming availability of FIDO2 authentication for all smart card environments using AirID2.

With this worldwide unique combination, all FIDO U2F and FIDO2 applications will be automatically available for all users, companies and authorities using smart cards today. FIDO authentication is supported by many well-known companies such as Amazon AWS, Dropbox, DUO, Facebook, Google, Github, IBM, Microsoft, RSA, Salesforce and many others. FIDO U2F is an open standard for authentication that has been established for years. FIDO2, an extension of U2F and since a few days a global W3C standard, offers a strong and secure password free authentication.

The new FIDO U2F and FIDO2 support will be provided as a software update for the new AirID 2 generation and will work independently of the smart card used. That means no matter if a company uses JavaCards, CARDOS, TCOS, PIV, CAC or other smart cards – simply insert these cards into an AirID 2 reader and the new FIDO U2F and FIDO2 authentication functions will be available immediately. Additional FIDO tokens are no longer required. General availability is planned for the 3rd quarter of 2019. Interested companies and authorities can register for a test program immediately on the certgate website.

The patented AirID 2 reader makes smart cards mobile and connects wireless (via Bluetooth 4.2) securely and encrypted to smartphones, tablets and laptops. AirID 2 is available as a business version for companies and as AirID1 as a government version for the public sector. The government version was tested by the German Federal Office for Information Security and has been approved for use in certain classified (VS-NfD) environments. AirID has been developed in Germany and is “Security made in Germany”.

AirID reader combine perfect, hardware-based security with very high user-friendliness and auto-lock of devices and applications. Simply leave the smart card with AirID in your pocket, on your belt or collar and use the applications safely. When the user moves away from the workstation or device, the device or applications will be automatically locked.

More information is available at www.airid.de, including a 60-second video for an overview and function of the AirID.

The new AirID2 FIDO extension supports the FIDO Alliance initiative to add flexible FIDO authentication to smart card based environments, such as Personal Identification Cards (PIV) compliant to U.S. Homeland Security Directive 12 (HSPD-12).

ABOUT CERTGATE:
certgate is one of the leading IT security providers for secure, mobile authentication and communication, as well as a long-standing member of the alliance “IT Security Made in Germany” and the international FIDO Alliance. Governments, authorities, global companies and IT security professionals at home and abroad secure their mobile devices, applications and communication with patented certgate technology and products. certgate solutions are distributed worldwide through authorized partners and provide real protection against hackers, mobile data leakage and unauthorized access. Thousands of users worldwide benefit daily from simple, strong authentication and protection of their valuable data.

All trademarks and trade names are the property of their respective owners.

certgate GmbH
Merianstrasse 26
90949 Nuremberg
Germany

Mr Jan Wendenburg
marketing@certgate.com

This release was published on openPR.