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A reader that authenticates consumers to online banking sites, a fledgling anti-fraud technology for cards and software that enables smart card Web "mashups" were among the technologies taking top honors yesterday at the Sesames awards, the kickoff of this week's Cartes and Identification show in Paris. France-based Gemalto won in the software category for software that enables consumers to use USB devices to personalize Web applications and similar tasks. Germany-based Infineon Technologies won in the hardware category for an emerging technology designed to improve security on various types of cards, including payment cards and identification documents such as electronic passports. The security scheme relies on two processors on the cards that regularly "cross-check" each other for security flaws, Helmut Gassel, Infineon's vice president and general manger for chip card security, told CardLine sister publication CardLine Global. The chips can "self-repair" and shut down should security be breached. France-based Xiring won in the banking category for its Xi Sign reader, which enables consumers to authenticate themselves after inserting their cards into the device. Xiring has sold most of the readers to banks in the United Kingdom, Georges Liberman, Xiring's chairman and CEO, told CardLine Global. Xiring, though, has recently won significant orders for the readers from financial institutions in France, Italy and Switzerland, he says. In the transport category, Germany-based Giesecke & Devrient won for its Touch and Travel technology that enables consumers to use Near Field Communication phones to pay for train rides. France-based Atos Worldline won top honors in the e-transaction category for its technology that enables consumers to book tickets through ATMs. For the loyalty category, Turkey-based Garanti Payment Systems won for its Flexi card.
