Federal government facilities need to secure highly sensitive information. With contractors and employees needing permission to view data, access applications, and visit different sites, ensuring everyone has access to the right resources can be overwhelming. Enabling authorization to the right workers is essential to safeguarding data across the organization.

Federal government facilities have their own rules as well. Homeland Security Presidential Directive 12 (HSPD-12) has the goal of creating secure forms of identification that are issued only under the following circumstances:

  • A background check is completed
  • Individuals can be rapidly authenticated electronically
  • Parties are issued a card only by a reliable provider
  • The cards have graduated criteria and security levels

In response to HSPD-12, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)  initiated a new program for improving the identification & authentication of federal employees and contractors to gain access to federal facilities and information systems. Federal Information Processing Standard 201 (FIPS 201) was developed to satisfy the technical requirements of HSPD-12. FIPS 201 specifies Personal Identity Verification (PIV) requirements for federal employees and contractors.

Convergint Technologies partners with HID Global to implement Crescendo PIV Smart Cards for organizations that need to comply with FIPS 201.

Crescendo PIV Smart Card

The Crescendo PIV Smart Card is dual-interface card that enables secure authentication through either a contact interface, by inserting the card in a smart card reader, or a interface without contact, presenting the card to a smart card reader or NFC-enabled device. The card uses a FIPS 140-2 Level-2-certified cryptographic module and is capable of containing multiple keys and certificates. Benefits of the Cescendo PIV Smart Card includes:

  • One card for physical and IT access featuring a cryptographic secure element

  • Allows access to doors, computers, network, and cloud

  • Compliant with FIPS 201 mandates for physical and logical access

  • PKI-based authentication, digital signature, and encryption

  • Optimized performance for faster physical access using digital certificates

  • NIST FIPS 140-2 Level 2 security certification

  • NIST FIPS 201 interoperability certification

Convergint is experienced with many types of government entities, including federal institutions, local municipalities, primary and higher education institutions, airports, public housing authorities, and non-profit organizations.

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