New US headquarters for centralizing cybersecurity
Federal cybersecurity workers in the US will be getting a new headquarters through funding included in the 2015 appropriations bill, according to national news reports. The new $35 million campus will focus on civilian cybersecurity operations, bringing together a workforce currently spread through the D.C. area. The center is also expected to be a boon to the local economy, attracting private sector entities active in cybersecurity, say reports.
India to secure 1.2 bn digital identities
India is planning a vast digital identity database that will store public records for each of its 1.2 billion citizens and enable them to access a range of e-government services. R.S. Sharma, secretary of the Department of Electronics and Information Technology said in an interview that the database will integrate police, court and criminal files, and that the government will also build a platform for uniform payment, property registration and social assistance systems. The Department of Electronics & Information Technology will develop new software for the database itself, because existing applications are a decade old and are not integrated, he said. Every citizen will be given access to cloud storage connected to their digital identity, enabling them to access services if they move to a different state, apply for a job or request assistance.
Nigerian eID beefs up logical security
Nigeria’s National Identity Management Commission’s eID card personalization bureau has been certified under the Global Vendors Certification Program (GVCP), which is run by MasterCard. The certification is said to have followed a refitting, retooling and upgrading of the card printing facility as part of efforts by management. The GVCP certification means the facility meets the requirements and standards for security and operational procedure in the plastic card industry as set by the EMV and PCI DSS globally for such high security areas (HSAs). The NIMC said measures taken included providing the required security monitoring appliances for the HSAs as well as ensuring the entire area is made safe and secured from threats of physical and logical security.
SecuGen brings in combined smart contactless biometrics
SecuGen has released the new Hamster Pro Duo/CL, a product that combines a contactless smart card reader with an optical fingerprint reader that is FAP 20 Mobile ID and PIV certified. According to SecuGen, the Hamster Pro DUO/CL was designed for projects such as National ID programs that require a contactless smart card to store a fingerprint template. The Hamster Pro Duo/CL features SecuGen’s U20 USB fingerprint sensor that is FBI Certified. SecuGen said as biometric implementations have become more widespread, there is an increasing demand for multi-modal biometric devices for both increased security