Certicom Security for RFID Product Authentication protects high-value
products against counterfeiting and ensures privacy
DALLAS, Nov. 29 /Xinhua-PRNewswire/ -- Certicom Corp. (TSX: CIC) today
launched Certicom Security for RFID Product Authentication, a solution that
ensures authenticity and prevents counterfeiting of high-value items as they
move through the supply chain. In collaboration with Texas Instruments
Incorporated (NYSE: TXN) (TI) Certicom is using its elliptic curve
cryptography (ECC) expertise to add item-level RFID tag security that
protects product information and proves the legitimacy of products, such as
pharmaceuticals and other high-value consumer goods. For products like these
that require a high level of security, RFID solutions providers can use
Certicom security and TI’s family of ISO 15693 RFID tags to deliver product
protection with authentication and encryption.
(Logo: http://www.prnasia.com/sa/20061107170439-20.jpg )
Certicom and TI are currently engaged with companies in the
pharmaceutical supply chain where valuable medicines are susceptible to
counterfeiting, which can lead to significant asset losses and patient
consumer safety issues. In tandem, they are addressing the high-value goods
industry where protection of brand integrity is imperative to reducing
product theft and diversion of goods for sale on the black market. Examples
of these products range from brand-name apparel and cosmetics to
professionally signed baseballs, poker chips, printer ink cartridges and
legal documents.
Certicom uses standards-based and proven cryptographic protocols for its
RFID appliance, including a standardized public-key cryptography scheme from
IEEE 1363a. This efficient ECC-based digital signature scheme enables a high
level of security to be added to the tag without requiring a lot of computing
power and storage. For example, at 160 bits, ECC provides the same level of
protection as a 1024-bit RSA key but is approximately one-third the size.
“By collaborating with Certicom, we demonstrate a highly efficient,
standardized security solution that delivers privacy protection and
authentication,” said Joseph Pearson, business development manager for TI
RFID. “A standardized approach is imperative to provide a proven level of
security, and to promote interoperability and compatibility going forward.”
Certicom Security for RFID Product Authentication works as a distributed
system where there may not be dedicated Internet connectivity to a database,
to provide real-time authentication of a tagged product. A simple application
programming interface (API) enables developers to integrate the product’s
components with RFID middleware and enterprise applications.
“The RFID industry is telling us that what is needed is a security
infrastructure that provides the smallest possible standardized digital
signatures, along with privacy protection features, with integrated key
management to meet the needs of the supply chain constituency, especially the
pharmaceutical manufacturers and retailers,” said Jim Alfred, director of
product management for Certicom. “TI has been instrumental in providing
their expertise and insight on the industry when it comes to what is required
for RFID product authentication. This is what we are delivering.”
Certicom Security for RFID Product Authentication will be demonstrated at
TI’s Booth #3015 at the RFID Healthcare Industry Adoption Summit at the
Marriott Wardman Park Hotel in Washington, D.C., November 12-15, 2006. The
Summit is sponsored by National Association of Chain Drug Stores and the
Healthcare Distribution Management Association.
For more information on how TI and Certicom are collaborating on RFID
product authentication and to view the demonstration of Certicom’s new
security product in action, please visit http://www.ti.com/rfidvidcast . For
more information on the product visit http://www.certicom.com/rfid .
About Texas Instruments
Texas Instruments is the world’s largest integrated manufacturer of
radio frequency identification (RFID) transponders and reader systems.
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 RFID
applications. For more information, contact TI-RFid(TM) Systems at 1-800-962-
RFID (7343) (North America) or +1 214-567-7343 (International), or visit the
Web site at http://www.ti-rfid.com .
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
Educational & Productivity Solutions 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
http://www.ti.com .
About Certicom
Certicom protects the value of your content, applications and devices
with government-approved security. Adopted by the National Security Agency
(NSA) for classified and sensitive but unclassified government
communications, Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC) provides the most security
per bit of any known public-key scheme. As the undisputed 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, ON, Canada
with worldwide sales and marketing headquarters in Reston, VA and offices in
the US, Canada and Europe. Visit http://www.certicom.com .
Trademarks
TI-RFid is a trademark of Texas Instruments. All other trademarks and
registered trademarks are property of their respective owners.