NW_20000620_en_BANCO DE OCCIDENTE Selects VASCO's Digipass for Secure Internet Banking
OAKBROOK TERRACE, Illinois - June 20, 2000 - VASCO Data Security International, Inc. (NASDAQ: VDSI; EASDAQ: VDSI; www.vasco.com) announced today that Banco de Occidente, a major Latin American bank located in Guatemala with hundreds of national and multinational commercial banking customers, has chosen VASCO’s Digipass security solution - integrated with Check Point Software Technologies’ (NASDAQ: CHKP) VPN-1/FireWall-1 product - to protect its Internet banking operations. Banco de Occidente turned to technology from VASCO and CheckPoint to safeguard its customers’ information and transactions, as well as the bank’s own well-earned reputation.
"Banco de Occidente demonstrates how we are able to leverage our proven security expertise into rapidly growing markets such as Latin America," noted Mario Houthooft, President and CEO of VASCO. "We expect more and more banks in Latin America to take Banco de Occidente’s lead and choose VASCO for their Internet security solutions."
To develop its secure electronic banking structure, Banco de Occidente drew on the security and information technology expertise of VASCO’s local reseller, SEFISA (www.sefisa.com). With extensive experience in building secure intranet and extranet solutions, SEFISA delivered a solution that met all the requirements of the bank for security and ease of use.
"SEFISA created a dependable and top-notch banking security solution that reassures our customers," explained Juan Carlos Alfaro, Product Manager - Cash Management for Banco de Occidente. "We’re already finding that secure Anytime, Anywhere banking is increasing customer satisfaction among our existing customers, as well as their use of our Internet banking services. In addition, our enhanced security is allowing us to attract entirely new customers, since they value our concern on this issue and we have something no other bank in the area can match."
The solution provided by SEFISA means Banco de Occidente’s customers can carry out transactions from their computers without worrying about access by unauthorized people. "The bank knew that security based on static passwords was just too weak, and fortunately we were able to offer them VASCO’s strong authentication solution," said Erick del Cid, General Manager of SEFISA. "With Digipass authentication, the bank is comfortable allowing its customers to conduct value-bearing transactions, since the identity of the person making the transaction is assured with a high level of confidence."
VASCO’s security solutions operate on the same basic principle as ATM machines: The combination of something you have (like an ATM card) and something you know (a PIN number or password) provides much greater security than does either by itself. In this case, the bank’s customer’s must have their own Digipass authentication device - not someone else’s - and the proper PIN number to activate the device. The Digipass generates a dynamic password that is valid only for the next 30 seconds.
"Check Point is pleased that Banco de Occidente has chosen Check Point's market-leading VPN-1/FireWall-1 and VASCO's OPSEC-certified Digipass authentication token to secure their on-line banking transactions," said Bradley Brown, director of business development, Check Point Software Technologies. "OPSEC Certification ensures that best-of-breed products interoperate with Check Point's security solutions, providing the high level of security essential for on-line banking."
About VASCO
VASCO helps organizations rapidly and effectively secure their
e-business and e-commerce applications and services. The company’s family of Digipass™, VACMAN®, and SnareWorks™ products offers end-to-end security through true Single Sign-On, PKI, web security, strong user authentication, access control, user administration and encryption solutions that also sharply reduce the time and effort required to deploy and manage them. With hundreds of financial institutions, blue-chip corporations, and government agencies as customers in more than 50 countries, VASCO Data Security is a global leader in security solutions that support the Internet economy. More information is available at www.vasco.com and www.isoft.com.
Forward Looking Statements
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," 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.
For more information please contact:
Americas:
Media: Kerry Roche, Bridgeman Communications, +1 617 742 7270, [email protected]
Investor Relations: Todd Fromer, KCSA Public Relations Worldwide, +1 212 682 6300, [email protected]
VASCO: Mike Lange, +1 630 932 8844, [email protected]
Europe/Asia:
Media (Benelux): Bob Pieters, Anthonissen & Associates, +32 3 286 7777, [email protected]
Media (Europe/Asia): Sven Kersten, HBI, +49 89 99 38 87 33, [email protected]
Investor Relations: Annemieke Blondeel, LBConsult, +44 208 308 7080, [email protected]
VASCO: Ariane Bosmans, +32 2 456 9810, [email protected]