Activcard said it is gaining broad-based industry support for its network security and authentication technology.
Axent Technologies Inc., Lucent Technologies Inc., Mondex International, Novell Inc., Visa International, and Hewlett-Packard Co.'s Verifone subsidiary are all integrating Activcard's Corporate Wallet authentication technology into their smart card systems, the company said.
Motorola Inc. and Sun Microsystems Inc. demonstrated Activcard technology during the recent Cardtech/Securtech conference in Chicago, though they have not signed formal agreements with Activcard.
Activcard, which was organized in France and has centered much of its business in Fremont, Calif., has jumped on the multiapplication card bandwagon. It promotes its security technology as a crucial element in protecting the service zones within a card's computer chip.
"Multiapplication smart card-based solutions, anchored by user authentication, are providing the basis for process re-engineering that will result in unprecedented efficiencies and return on investment," said Jean-Gerard Galvez, Activcard's chairman, president, and chief executive officer.
Activcard's technology distributes, manages, and controls the credentials that are used in user authentication and digital signatures.
It can work with static passwords, dynamic passwords, or public key infrastructures, or PKIs.
Activcard technology is available to both Visa and Mondex, which is MasterCard International's smart card subsidiary, to authenticate cardholders when using corporate networks and Internet services.
Philip Yen, senior vice president of emerging technology at Visa, said its partnership with Activcard lets Visa members move forward in the essential smart card functions of payment and customer identification.
Lucent and Novell have integrated the technology into their portal- manager authentication systems, which are used for dialing into networks.
Axent is using Activcard's Corporate Wallet technology in its OmniGuard/Defender network security systems, which give users access to network data from multiple entry points.
"All of these companies are utilizing Activcard's technology for a piece of a bigger puzzle," said Rodman Stuhlmuller, director of corporate marketing at Activcard.
Activcard's strategy has been to team up with developers and technology vendors. It has branded its technology "Activcard activated," its analog to the familiar "Intel inside."
Activcard, founded in Paris about 10 years ago, does much of its business in northern Europe, supplying security tokens for Internet banking customers.
In North America, it anticipates a major expansion of smart cards beginning with corporate information technology and closed-campus environments, Mr. Stuhlmuller said.
