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| Hirsch drives open and secure network computing standards into physical security industry |
Hirsch Electronics, a leading supplier of physical access control and security management solutions to enterprises and government agencies, announced it has joined the Trusted Computing Group (TCG) and will participate in its Trusted Network Connect (TNC) work group to enable more secure computing across the enterprise. By joining with other TCG member companies such as IBM, HP, Microsoft, Juniper, Intel and RSA, Hirsch continues its leadership in driving open and secure networking capabilities into physical security industry products.
As a trailblazer in networked / interoperable security devices such as those used in identity-managed access control, CCTV and intrusion detection, Hirsch Electronics recognized the opportunity for these systems to share information with each other as well as with other systems including network security and building management. With the many benefits offered by networked physical security, Hirsch also accepted the responsibility to ensure physical security devices and applications do not, themselves, create interoperability issues or network security problems. By applying TCG's open, standards-based architecture to physical security systems, Hirsch's products will help enterprises enhance system integrity and better protect information assets (data, passwords, encryption keys, etc.) from compromise due to external software attack and physical theft.
"The convergence of physical and logical systems helps address two of the top concerns of business and government today: security and compliance with regulations and policies," commented Robert Beliles, Hirsch Electronics vice president, enterprise business development. "But, it's not sufficient for suppliers to merely provide 'network-connected'
products. Given, the nature of security products, any device or individual they communicate with must also be trusted and secure. By working with and adopting the Trusted Computing Group's open standards, Hirsch Electronics products and systems will continue to provide the flexibility and security that savvy customers are demanding." 
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Hirsch Electronics, well known for security innovations and their early evangelism of multi-factor authentication, encryption, IP, XML, and system interoperability, builds upon their leadership position with this announcement.
"As the first system manufacturer of complete physical access control systems to join TCG," noted Brian Berger, TCG marketing work group chairman, "we welcome the expertise and support of Hirsch Electronics in TCG and anticipate their participation will extend the development and deployment of the TNC architecture."
TCG's Trusted Network Connect (TNC) architecture is the only non-proprietary solution for network access control and network security. Initial TNC specifications were introduced by TCG in May 2005 and are now supported in products from a substantial number of TCG's 140 members. Reliable security architectures and standards developed through industry groups like TNC can drive innovation, reduce cost of implementation, and enhance security.
