news_DIGIPASS enables secure online access to Penn State’s administration services
OAKBROOK TERRACE, Illinois and ZURICH, Switzerland – July 27, 2009 - VASCO Data Security International, Inc. (Nasdaq: VDSI) (www.vasco.com), a leading software security company specializing in authentication products announced today that The Pennsylvania State University (www.psu.edu) has deployed DIGIPASS® authentication to faculty and staff to provide direct electronic and secure access to Penn State’s administration services.
Penn State is a leading research university in the United States and is recognized around the world for its excellence in engineering, the sciences, agriculture, and high-tech innovations. It is a comprehensive institution that includes colleges of the arts and liberal arts, as well as colleges and schools of health and human development, communications, business, and education. More than 80,000 students are currently enrolled in a wide variety of academic programs.
Penn State has been using two-factor authentication for years, providing real time online access to academic and financial records in the University’s administrative database. Authorized faculty and staff can manage records for all Penn State students from admission through graduation, including online grade management, billing information, course scheduling and student aid. To maintain data integrity and confidentiality of student records and financial data, the University mandates the use of two-factor authentication to access centralized administrative systems.
Although a device based authentication solution was already in place, Penn State ended its dependence on higher-priced hardware authenticators in favor of VASCO’s DIGIPASS technology. “We were looking for a more budget-friendly yet proven security solution to authenticate users with different roles to varying applications,” said John Williams, Director of User Services at Penn State. “Since we already implemented a third party authentication package, the new-found authentication solution needed to be fully compliant with our mainframe infrastructure at no additional cost.”
Security solutions provider ISM played a facilitating role in closing the deal. “We proposed a more cost effective authentication solution that had the flexibility to grow as the University changes,” John Sieg at ISM says. “DIGIPASS is a highly scalable and affordable solution, exactly fit for Penn State’s needs. The total cost of ownership was considerably reduced as the fee per device is very reasonable and the average battery lifetime of five years and beyond offers a high return on investment.”
“VASCO’s DIGIPASS technology helped us to significantly reduce costs, allowing a redirection of available funds into other areas,” John Williams affirms.
DIGIPASS adds an extra security layer to traditional password based security. At the push of a button, DIGIPASS generates a dynamic one-time password. When requested during the login procedure, University staff members enter the one-time password into the application’s interface together with their login name and static password, hence providing positive proof of identity.
“Confidentiality, data integrity and security of business critical information remains a top priority,” said Jan Valcke, President and COO of VASCO Data Security. “As budgets tighten, educational facilities see the value in deploying affordable authentication methods. With DIGIPASS, VASCO provides an effective and cost-conscious solution to suit the University’s long-term authentication needs.”
PennStatewas founded in 1855 as an agricultural college. The University has awarded more than a half-million degrees and has been Pennsylvania’s largest source of baccalaureate degrees at least since the 1930s.Today Penn State is one of four ‘state-related’ universities with 19 colleges and 23 locations. More than 80,000 students are currently enrolled in a wide variety of academic programs.
ISM, a proactive security solutions provider for wired and wireless networks, has been supplying superior fulfillment services, tier I and tier II support, teaming consulting services, and proven security solutions for the past 20 years. ISM provides information security solutions to commercial and federal clients with specific information technology requirements. Through the use of enterprise vulnerability testing and research, ISM provides strategic planning and development services for organizations wishing to maximize network resources within a secure environment. ISM has formed strategic partnerships with industry leaders in order to fulfill the unique computing requirements of today's technology-driven companies. You can see more about ISM at www.ism.com.
VASCO is a leading supplier of strong authentication and e-signature solutions and services specializing in Internet Security applications and transactions. VASCO has positioned itself as global software company for Internet Security serving a customer base of approximately 9,000 companies in more than 100 countries, including almost 1,300 international financial institutions. VASCO’s prime markets are the financial sector, enterprise security, e-commerce and e-government.
Statements made in this news release that relate to future plans, events or performances are forward-looking statements. Any statement containing words such as "believes," "anticipates," "plans," "expects," "intend," "mean," and similar words, is forward-looking, and these statements involve risks and uncertainties and are based on current expectations. Consequently, actual results could differ materially from the expectations expressed in these forward-looking statements.
Reference is made to the Company's public filings with the US Securities and Exchange Commission for further information regarding the Company and its operations.
This document may contain trademarks of VASCO Data Security International, Inc. and its subsidiaries, which include VASCO, the VASCO “V” design, DIGIPASS, VACMAN, aXsGUARD and IDENTIKEY.
For more information contact:
Jochem Binst, +32 2 609 97 00, [email protected]