Start-up secure authentication software developer FireID is to take its one-time password solution into the competitive US market this week, even though it has not yet secured any domestic orders.
Formerly known as Fireflight, the Stellenbosch company has developed a security system that uses open standard algorithms that can be loaded onto a number of different cellular phone platforms.
The system does away with the dongles that one-time password (OTP) systems currently use and so lessens the physical logistics around such systems.
Malan Joubert, a FireID director, says it has become internationally accepted that “homebrewed” security systems are not the solution and that large organisations, such as banks and government agencies, need solutions that generate OTPs as these are considered the most secure solutions.
“SMS password verification is risky as these can be intercepted. OTPs, on the other hand, expire the moment they are used and so they are considered a more secure solution. The big problem is that OTPs are currently dongle-based, meaning a physical device has to be sent to the user via secure mail and so on. Our solution is to take these algorithms and place them on mobile phones,” he notes.
Joubert says the big trick for FireID was to make sure its solution works across literally hundreds of cellular phone platforms.
Quick mover
Recently, South African billionaire Johan Rupert personally invested in FireID and provided it with a cash injection that is enabling it to move quickly into other markets, despite still being in discussions with local businesses over its solutions.
“We are currently in second and third meeting stages with several local banks and they have shown keen interest,” says Debbie Visser, FireID marketing manager.
FireID will launch its US presence this week at the RSA Conference, being held in San Francisco.
Jenny Dugmore, FireID CEO, believes the US market could become the company's prime market, based on the view on the rapid uptake of similar products there.
Dugmore says that, while the US market is less progressive than SA in the cellphone arena, it is becoming increasingly receptive to more sophisticated mobile security solutions.
“We have a narrow window of opportunity,” says Dugmore. “Customers are indicating that a mobile authentication system is high on their agenda for 2009.”
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