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SPYRUS Media Contact:
Tom Dickens
Chief Operating Officer
Phone: +1 (408) 953-0700
tdickens@spyrus.com
Florida Department of Law Enforcement Deploys SPYRUSŪ PKI
Law enforcement agencies now have a new level of control over information sharing.
San Jose, Calif. - January 22, 2001 - SPYRUS, the High Assurance PKI Systems Company for Global Business, today announced that the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) has deployed a state-wide law enforcement PKI system built around the SPYRUS PKI system solution. The system enables complete authentication of law enforcement personnel accessing sensitive databases.
The SPYRUS PKI deployment is part of a National Institute of Justice (NIJ) sponsored initiative conducted in cooperation with FDLE. The NIJ proposed the project to FDLE and both agencies (NIJ and FDLE) jointly funded the PKI. "The FDLE PKI deployment reflects the vision of the NIJ for innovative next-generation information sharing technologies in the criminal justice community," said Dr. John Hoyt, Program Manager for the National Institute of Justice.
The SPYRUS PKI has been deployed over the Florida statewide frame relay network called the Criminal Justice Network or CJNet. Over 300 law enforcement agencies are connected to the network, which reaches more than 800 locations from the Georgia border to Key West. In preparation for its network-wide rollout, FDLE purchased a SPYRUS PKI license for 10,000 seats. To date, approximately 5,000 digital certificates have been issued, paving the way for all authorized Florida law enforcement personnel to access a wide array of information.
"SPYRUS's involvement in deploying a PKI solution for the Florida Department of Law Enforcement indicates that law enforcement markets have a definite need for the SPYRUS PKI system," said Sue Pontius, SPYRUS President and CEO. "SPYRUS is excited about the opportunity to bring new levels of authenticated, secure information sharing to help FDLE create a more efficient law enforcement community."
Since its introduction, CJNet had steadily grown in terms of users and databases. In early 1998, FDLE grew concerned over unauthorized access to sensitive data, and began investigating ways to maximize accessibility to CJNet without compromising security. After performing product evaluations, the department chose the SPYRUS PKI solution for meeting key criteria of being standards-based, high assurance, tailorable to match its business rules, and easy to manage. The scalability of the SPYRUS PKI was also a significant factor, considering the potential number of SPYRUS PKI users on CJNet.
The first database made available through the SPYRUS PKI deployment is the Florida Department of Highway, Safety & Motor Vehicles' database of drivers' license photograph identification files. Law enforcement personnel with the proper authorization can now use CJNet to access these files to help them in cases where a facial image is necessary, such as those involving missing individuals or suspected criminals.
SPYRUS is working with FDLE and the NIJ to deploy PKI-enabling middleware that will make it easier for additional databases to go online. Drug investigation and gang activity databases are among the next ones to be made available through CJNet. Ultimately, FDLE intends to offer authorized personnel access to all state and local law enforcement applications through a single search capability. Using just one query, authorized personnel will be able to obtain an individual's criminal history, driving record, gang involvement, vehicle ownership records, and other relevant information. Today, gathering that information takes multiple searches of multiple databases.
"The SPYRUS PKI system has significantly enhanced information sharing within the Florida criminal justice community by providing a high-assurance environment in which users have extreme confidence," said Tom Watkins, Chief of Production Systems Services, Florida Department of Law Enforcement. "The SPYRUS solution will help FDLE not only eliminate many of the time-consuming, tedious tasks associated with information gathering and sharing, but streamline our system so that it is more efficient and consequently more useful to law enforcement personnel."
The SPYRUS PKI is a high-assurance Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) solution built for large corporate and government enterprises around the world. The SPYRUS PKI is the most technologically advanced PKI available for building the foundation enterprises need to implement electronic business in today's communications-centric markets. Built on industry standards and recognized security techniques, the SPYRUS PKI is designed for easy integration with applications for intranet, extranet, and Internet environments. The SPYRUS PKI enables Web-based authentication out of the box using commercial desktop products from Microsoft and Netscape.
About SPYRUS
SPYRUS, Inc., based in San Jose, California, delivers complete high assurance lifecycle identity management solutions for the government and corporate markets. These user-friendly solutions safeguard computer and network resources while simplifying administration, reducing cost-of-ownership, and raising overall security assurance levels, specifically for Microsoft platforms. The Company is the leading U.S.-based provider of FIPS 140-1 Level 2 and Level 3 cryptographic smart tokens and software servicing several significant Department of Defense programs. SPYRUS has developed unique, fully compliant Rosetta Common Services Interface (Rosetta CSI) middleware that is certified to support the Common Access Card program. Rosetta CSI supports multiple high assurance smart tokens and provides multiple encryption and signature algorithms that can secure the biometrics for transmission or storage. www.spyrus.com
SPYRUS Media Contact:
Tom Dickens
Chief Operating Officer
Phone: +1 (408) 953-0700
tdickens@spyrus.com
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