Raising the bar on smartcards for physical access

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New guidance from the Smart Card Alliance could speed and standardize procurements of physical access control systems.

Smartcards can be even smarter when organizations follow a new individualized implementation guide, says the Smart Card Alliance. The step-by-step, insert-your-needs-here publication released April 7 is meant to help companies employ more accessible and secure physical access control systems (PACS) for their specific facilities.

Written in industry-standard language, and meant to work with a variety of PACS, the information is directed to the architects, engineers, consultants and others in charge of a procuring a company’s PAC design and engineering. There is even a version that answers questions about terminology to bring all those involved onto even ground.

While this Smart Card Alliance initiative is explicitly aimed at non-government systems, it comes as both the private and public sectors alike are struggling to balance security and accessibility when deploying smartcards.   

Randy Vanderhoof, executive director of the Smart Card Alliance believes this guide can help. The specification, he said, "sets forward clearly defined and industry-validated recommendations surrounding smartcards and PACS, ensuring that the full security benefits are achieved with each implementation."

The Smart Card Alliance’s guide, however, makes clear that it is just that – a guide – putting the onus of success on those in charge of implementation. “Proper installations not only involve the specification but also include the responsibilities of the manufacturer, integrator and end user to deploy, operate and maintain the solution,” the report states in its opening pages.

Read the Guide Specification for Architects and Engineers for Smart Card-based PACS Cards and Readers for Non-government PACS.

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