The Physical Security Interoperability Alliance (PSIA) announced it has approved the Public Key Open Credential (PKOC) NFC Card Specification-Version 1.1.
The PSIA has been working with a broad group of industry pioneers in the card, reader, and access control industries to come up with this specification, which is likely to have a significant influence on the future of secure credentials.
Simple with asymmetric encryption
Mohammad Soleimani, the Chief Innovation Officer of Kastle Systems, introduced this concept to the PSIA in 2023 and has had a strong influence in engaging other companies in its development.
Mohammad Soleimani said, “A standard for a secure credential on a smart card is a perfect complement to the work we have been doing on mobile credentials featuring PKOC. The specification relies on established standards and the Public Key Infrastructure, to provide a simple, but elegant solution, with the added benefit of more robust asymmetric encryption.”
Universally compatible secure credential
Progress has been dramatic, with the apps, readers, and cards being demonstrated at industry events
PKOC addresses the need for a universally compatible secure credential for the physical access control industry in the form of cards, fobs, mobile devices, and wearables.
Progress has been dramatic, with the apps, readers, and cards being demonstrated at industry events. In addition, customers are not only requesting the technology but also rolling out commercial implementations.
Benefits
“The access control industry has been predicting a rapid shift to mobile credentials, but the reality is smart cards will remain as a staple for access control for at least the next decade,” said David Bunzel, Executive Director of the PSIA.
David Bunzel adds, “PKOC enabled on an access card provides two important benefits: 1) More robust security featuring asymmetric encryption and 2) A reliable migration path from cards to mobile credentials.”
Physical access
“Physical Access is the next frontier for smart cards. Our customers want a single credential that can be used for both logical and physical access. The PSIA’s introduction of a card version of its Public Key Open Credential (PKOC) specification will be a perfect complement to this objective," notes GW Habraken, Co-Founder and Managing Director of Taglio.
The PSIA approved its PKOC NFC Card Specification in December of 2023. As noted above, it is already available in commercial products.
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