HID Global Unveils Federal Identity Compliance Initiative For Physical Access Control

HID Global recently announced it will be demonstrating the first in a planned family of simple-to-deploy, cost-effective, turnkey FIPS 201 compliance solutions at ISC West 2011. 

The company’s Federal Identity Compliance Initiative will make it easier for federal agencies to upgrade anexisting physical access control system (PACS) to support recently mandated government identity-verification standards.

HID Global’s federal compliance initiative combines the company’s strengths in access control solutions and technology migration, the enhanced cryptographic security of its next-generation reader platform, and the extensive identity-assurance portfolio it acquired from ActivIdentity, a recently purchased HID Global company. 

Customers will be able to deploy HID Global readers that are seamlessly integrated with its ActivIdentity ActivEntry upgrade modules, and achieve full FIPS 201 compliance without having to replace their current physical access control head-end server, panel or door control hardware.


According to a February 2011 memorandum issued by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), existing physical and logical access control systems must be upgraded to use Personal Identification Verification (PIV) credentials in accordance with National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) guidelines, before federal agencies may use development and technology refresh funds to complete other activities.

HID Global’s Federal Identity Compliance Initiative will speed and simplify compliance, offer a migration path from legacy to PIV credentials, and provide a modular hardware approach that makes it easier for agencies to respond to regulatory changes, modify security levels in selected areas as required, and take advantage of ongoing advances in access-control technology.     

“HID is uniquely positioned to serve this critical government market need,” said Brad Jarvis, vice president of strategic product initiatives with HID Global.  “Our Federal Identity Compliance Initiative gives agencies the confidence that they can achieve compliance quickly, effectively and with all necessary audit support, on an incremental, pay-as-you-go basis that preserves investments in their existing infrastructure.  We will be extending our next-generation reader platform with a variety of modular hardware options that enable agencies to very flexibly address compliance requirements across all PIV access-area permission levels.”

HID Global’s next-generation readers use EAL5+ Secure Element (SE) hardware for tamper-proof protection of keys and cryptographic operations, and the industry-standard Open Supervised Device Protocol (OSDP) to establish a seamless and secure, bidirectional communications link with the company’s ActivEntry hardware modules.  

This creates a fully tested and validated, turnkey solution for upgrading an existing physical access control infrastructure so that it can authenticate PIV credentials across the full range of assurance levels as defined by the federal government’s Special Publication 800-116 (SP800-116).  The most recent ActivEntry 2.4 offering also adds a new service application programming interface (API) that integrates PACS enrollment capability directly into the validation service.

HID Global plans to expand its offering to address all SP800-116 access permission levels, including Controlled, Limited and Exclusion areas.  To showcase the capabilities HID Global will offer during the first two deployment phases of its Federal Identity Compliance Initiative, the company will be featuring its coming, next-generation access control platform, the iCLASS SE reader, in the following demonstrations at ISC West 2011:

  • Controlled access compliance:    This solution will show how HID Global’s next-generation access control platform supports Card Authentication Key (CAK) Certificate access and delivers access permissions to Controlled areas per SP800-116 requirements.
  • Contact and biometric compliance:  This solution will enable PIV authorization certificate access, which delivers access permissions to Controlled, Limited and Exclusion areas per SP800-116 requirements.

HID Global will be offering its Federal Identity Compliance Initiative product family through its proven network of physical access control channel partners.  The initiative is backed by the company’s Genuine HID value proposition, which stresses the highest levels of global product quality and delivery performance.  HID Global also plans to extend the program beyond FIPS 201 to support Public Key Infrastructure (PKI)-at-the-door compliance and also PIV-I and PIV-C (PIV-compatible) requirements for cards issued by non-federal entities.

 

Featured

  • 2025 Gun Violence Statistics Show Signs of Progress

    Omnilert, a national leader in AI-powered safety and emergency communications, has released its 2025 Gun Violence Statistics, along with a new interactive infographic examining national and school-related gun violence trends. In 2025, the U.S. recorded 38,762 gun-violence deaths, highlighting the continued importance of prevention, early detection, and coordinated response. Read Now

  • Big Brand Tire & Service Rolls Out Interface Virtual Perimeter Guard

    Interface Systems, a managed service provider delivering remote video monitoring, commercial security systems, business intelligence, and network services for multi-location enterprises, today announced that Big Brand Tire & Service, one of the nation’s fastest-growing independent tire and automotive service providers, has eliminated costly overnight break-ins and significantly reduced trespassing and vandalism at a high-risk location. The company achieved these results by deploying Interface Virtual Perimeter Guard, an AI-powered perimeter security solution designed to deter incidents before they occur. Read Now

  • The Evolution of ID Card Printing: Customer Challenges and Solutions

    The landscape of ID card printing is evolving to meet changing customer needs, transitioning from slow, manual processes to smart, on-demand printing solutions that address increasingly complex enrollment workflows. Read Now

  • TSA Awards Rohde & Schwarz Contract for Advanced Airport Screening Ahead of Soccer World Cup 2026

    Rohde & Schwarz, a provider of AI-based millimeter wave screening technology, announced today it has won a multi-million dollar award from TSA to supply its QPS201 AIT security scanners to passenger security screening checkpoints at selected Soccer World Cup 2026 host city airports. Read Now

  • Brivo, Eagle Eye Networks Merge

    Dean Drako, Chairman of Brivo, the leading global provider of cloud-native access control and smart space technologies, and Founder of Eagle Eye Networks, the global leader in cloud AI video surveillance, today announced the two companies will merge, creating the world’s largest AI cloud-native physical security company. The merged company will operate under the Brivo name and deliver a truly unified cloud-native security platform. Read Now

New Products

  • A8V MIND

    A8V MIND

    Hexagon’s Geosystems presents a portable version of its Accur8vision detection system. A rugged all-in-one solution, the A8V MIND (Mobile Intrusion Detection) is designed to provide flexible protection of critical outdoor infrastructure and objects. Hexagon’s Accur8vision is a volumetric detection system that employs LiDAR technology to safeguard entire areas. Whenever it detects movement in a specified zone, it automatically differentiates a threat from a nonthreat, and immediately notifies security staff if necessary. Person detection is carried out within a radius of 80 meters from this device. Connected remotely via a portable computer device, it enables remote surveillance and does not depend on security staff patrolling the area.

  • Camden CV-7600 High Security Card Readers

    Camden CV-7600 High Security Card Readers

    Camden Door Controls has relaunched its CV-7600 card readers in response to growing market demand for a more secure alternative to standard proximity credentials that can be easily cloned. CV-7600 readers support MIFARE DESFire EV1 & EV2 encryption technology credentials, making them virtually clone-proof and highly secure.

  • 4K Video Decoder

    3xLOGIC’s VH-DECODER-4K is perfect for use in organizations of all sizes in diverse vertical sectors such as retail, leisure and hospitality, education and commercial premises.