Access Control, Unlimited

If your company's name badges merely get employees through the front door, you're out of date.

By Julie Hanson

June 01, 2003 — CSO — Access-control technologies now mean that ID cards can be used to store attendance and health records, log users on to their computers or pay for a Coke from the soda machine downstairs. CSOs can program cards to turn electricity and air-conditioning off and on, limit employee access by time of day or location, and give traveling executives access to the Amsterdam office. "Access control is now based on an integrated system of technology. We are at computer-based operations that are enterprisewide," says Marc Bradshaw, president of the International Association of Professional Security Consultants. Embedded smart card technology, in particular, has changed the game in access control.

Swipe cards are pretty much passé, giving way to proximity cardsaccess cards that work within 12 to 14 inches of a reader. Smaller and cheaper memory chips, made possible through technological advancements, are now often embedded in smart cards, making access control more affordableeven for small companies. And on the move up, biometrics. Although in use mostly by government operations, biometrics is slowly permeating private industry and will be the next big thing in access-control security, says Bradshaw.

HID Corp. (www.hidcorp.com), a manufacturer of contactless readers, offers numerous types of smart cards, including both traditional swipe cards and proximity cards. HID says forthcoming generations of technology will include imbedded chips that store information such as whenand at which locationscardholders can access certain buildings. Of the cards offered by HID, proximity cards traditionally have offered the best security and control. But Deb Spitler, vice president of marketing, says new smart cards utilize encryption and mutual authentication that raise the bar.

HID's iClass suite includes a contactless smart card with read and write capabilities. Unlike proximity cards, contactless smart cards can contain information married to the individual usersuch as health records, which make it easier to treat an employee who falls ill at work, or specified access for that employee, for example, allowing only approved personnel into R&D labs. (Proximity systems can store this kind of information in a centralized database but not in the card itself.) Contactless smart cards can hold as much as 16 kilobits worth of memory, enough to house cutting edge biometric technologies, such as fingerprint and hand geometry identification, says Spitler.

At Lenel Systems International (www.lenel.com), the emphasis is on the integration of security management solutions. Through its OnGuard ET second edition product, Lenel integrates the monitoring and maintenance of varying aspects of security, including access control, video monitoring systems, visitor management, even fire alarm systems. Lenel CEO Elena Prokupets says this system allows security executives to integrate both physical and logical security and take "total control of people walking in and out of your building, who invited them and what employees are responsible for these visitors."

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