Card Technology Magazine Recognizes GlobalPlatform Card Specification v2.2 In Annual Breakthrough Award
15 May, 2007 - The GlobalPlatform Card Specification v2.2 has been voted a finalist in the Innovation category of the annual Card Technology Breakthrough Awards, presented today by Card Technology Chief Editor, Dan Balaban, at CardTech SecurTech 2007 in San Francisco.
GlobalPlatform Card Specification v2.2, which was published by the international specifications body in response to industry feedback in March 2006, was recognized in the Innovation category which acknowledged the biggest advance in smart card technology in 2006. Judges gave credit to nominees which were successful in advancing technology in a way not done before and for the commercial feasibility of solutions.
This prestigious industry accolade for GlobalPlatform's Card Specification closely follows its recent recognition by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), which incorporated GlobalPlatform technology, based on the GlobalPlatform Card Specification, in the ISO/IEC 7816-13 international standard: commands for application management in a multi-application environment, in March 2007. GlobalPlatform is now implementing ISO 7816-13 within the GlobalPlatform Card Specification v2.2 and as the first specification body to be fully compliant, can provide card management systems with a simple migration path from the existing GlobalPlatform Specifications to the new ISO standard.
Gil Bernabeu, GlobalPlatform's Technical Director and Technical Advisor for the Standardization and Technology Department at Gemalto, comments: "For GlobalPlatform to be recognized at this level for the work that is very much driven by its membership speaks volumes about the importance and influence of industry collaboration.
"By listening to the demands of various smart card markets and responding to their needs, the GlobalPlatform membership, through their participation on GlobalPlatform's technical committees, ensure that the organization and its technology constantly evolves in line with, even ahead of, market requirements. This in turn, ensures that all GlobalPlatform members and other implementers of GlobalPlatform technology remain at the forefront of the market through their ability to offer products and solutions which are flexible, interoperable, scaleable, secure and cost-effective.
"On behalf of GlobalPlatform I'd like to offer sincere thanks, and congratulations, to all member organizations and individuals involved with the development of GlobalPlatform Card Specification v2.2."
Available for public download from the GlobalPlatform website (www.globalplatform.org), the GlobalPlatform Card Specification v2.2 has succeeded in extending the relevance and capabilities of GlobalPlatform's interoperable smart card specification to the government eID / ePassport and the mobile telecommunications smart card sectors by addressing key functionality and security requests received from these industries. Updates from the previous version of the GlobalPlatform Card Specification v2.1, include:
- Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) functionality
- Over the Air (OTA) Card Content Management capabilities
- Support for dual-interface contact / contactless smart cards
- An extension of the Application Programming Interface (API) providing the card management framework with the vocabulary and parameters required to support both Multos and Java Card
- A trust structure required to enable dynamic post-issuance management
There are approximately 150 million GlobalPlatform smart cards in circulation that can now migrate to this latest specification and benefit from its increased functionality.
Separately, GlobalPlatform is reacting to the Personal Identity Verification (PIV) of Federal Employees and Contractors initiative, HSPD12-mandate, which aims to specify the architecture and technical requirements for a common identification standard for Federal employees. By working with various US Government departments, GlobalPlatform aims to assist with Part 2 of the program which will detail specifications that support technical interoperability among PIV systems of Federal departments and agencies. The work will produce a defined instruction set on how to apply GlobalPlatform Messaging to PIV that complies with the US Federal Pre-Issuance Requirements (PIR) specifications.
About GlobalPlatform
GlobalPlatform is the global leader in smart card infrastructure development and its proven, technical specifications for cards, devices and systems are known as the standard for smart card infrastructure. GlobalPlatform is a member driven association with cross-industry representation from all world continents. For more information about GlobalPlatform, visit: www.globalplatform.org
