Texas Instruments Selects Certicom to Secure Next-Generation of Government-Issued Identification Documents |
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Certicom Corp.
5520 Explorer Dr.
Mississauga, ON, L4W5L1
USA
Press release date: November 12, 2007
MISSISSAUGA, ON, and DALLAS, TX, Nov. 12 - Certicom Corp. (TSX: CIC) today announced that Texas Instruments Incorporated (TI) (NYSE:TXN) is licensing Certicom's Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC) technology to deliver enhanced security as part of the TI RF360 next-generation, smart integrated circuit (IC) platform for government-issued electronic identification (e-ID) documents (www.ti.com/govid). With Certicom's embedded ECC technology, TI can now offer faster and more secure processing of electronic passports (e-passports) and other government-issued electronic IDs. (See www.ti.com/govid)
Under terms of the agreement, TI is licensing Certicom's advanced low power ECC/RSA hardware acceleration IP core and cryptographic software for its RF360 smart IC platform. This agreement with Certicom helps position TI as a leader in next-generation secure chip technology for the government e-ID market and builds upon the existing alliance between the companies where TI is using Certicom's ECC expertise and technology for standards-based RFID authentication and encryption.
"Combining Certicom's crypto engine with our FRAM memory and MSP430 processor core enables TI's new platform for government-issued IDs to operate at a significantly higher performance level with respect to speed and security," said Julie England, vice president of Texas Instruments. "This partnership is key to offering high assurance that personal information on government-issued passports and documents can be processed quickly and securely."
Implementing Certicom's ECC technology, TI can ensure long-term compliance with the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) SP800-78 key management requirements for FIPS 201 Personal Identity Verification (PIV) cards as well as with international e-passport requirements. Compliance is also provided with Suite B key agreement algorithms that were established as part of the NSA's Cryptographic Modernization Program to protect both sensitive and classified data. As the primary source of Suite B technology, Certicom is recognized by industry and government agencies to be the leading provider of ECC and Suite B-based solutions. Certicom holds more than 20 Suite B-related patents.
"Cryptographic algorithms are changing. With NIST's requirement to cease using RSA-1024 after the year 2008 for PIV key management, TI is demonstrating security leadership by offering an e-ID platform with 256-bit ECC that is as strong as RSA with 3,072 bits. As the market for contactless technologies, such as e-passports, continues on a path of rapid growth, Certicom is completely committed to ensuring that the cryptographic security of these devices can be made robust well into the foreseeable future," said Bill Lattin, chief technology officer at Certicom. "We look forward to further collaborations with TI to offer their customers our efficient, next-generation crypto solutions."
About Texas Instruments A technology pioneer in secured contactless applications, Texas Instruments delivers many innovative contactless and secured products to the forefront of electronic ID and payments markets. ExxonMobil's SpeedPass(TM) and the American Express Blue Card leveraged TI's technical expertise in providing the first "pay-at-the-pump" application and the innovative clear contactless credit card design. TI is developing faster, more secure smart IC applications for the next generation of contactless electronic government-issued identification. High-performance and low-power contactless applications continue to be evidence of TI's strength in designing robust, yet streamlined products that execute more efficiently. Capitalizing on its competencies in high-volume semiconductor manufacturing and microelectronics packaging, TI is a visionary leader and at the forefront of establishing new markets and international standards for secured contactless applications. For more information, call 1-800-962-7343 or visit the Web site at www.ti.com/govid. Texas Instruments Incorporated provides innovative DSP and analog technologies to meet our customers' real world signal processing requirements. In addition to Semiconductor, the company includes the Education Technology business. TI is headquartered in Dallas, Texas, and has manufacturing, design or sales operations in more than 25 countries. Texas Instruments is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol TXN. More information is located on the World Wide Web at www.ti.com.
About Certicom Certicom protects the value of content, applications and devices with government-approved security. Adopted by the National Security Agency (NSA) for government communications, Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC) provides the most security per bit of any known public-key scheme. As the global leader in ECC, Certicom security offerings are currently licensed to more than 300 customers including General Dynamics, Motorola, Oracle, Research In Motion and Unisys. Founded in 1985, Certicom's corporate offices are in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada with worldwide sales and marketing headquarters in Reston, Virginia and offices in the U.S., Canada, Europe and China. Visit www.certicom.com.
CONTACT: For Certicom: John Conrad, Merritt Group Inc., (703) 390-1538, conrad@merrittgrp.com;
For TI: Cindy Huff, TI-RFID Systems, (870) 688-3974, chuff@ti.com;
Ashley Peterson, Bridgeman Communications, (617) 742-7270, Ashley@bridgeman.com
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