Ingersoll Rand announces Ultra Electronics Card Systems has joined aptiQ Alliance program

July 16, 2013
Customers of Ultra Electronics who utilize Magicard Rio Pro can now easily print and encode high security aptiQ smart cards

CARMEL, IND., July 16, 2013 – Ingersoll Rand Security Technologies today announced that Ultra Electronics Card Systems, which provides specialized identity products for securing people and property, has joined the aptiQ Alliance program. As a new member of the aptiQ Alliance, customers of Ultra Electronics who utilize Magicard Rio Pro can now easily print and encode high security aptiQ smart cards for use at their respective sites.
aptiQ smart cards provide a higher level of security, more convenience and far greater functionality than traditional “proximity” badges. Whether at a corporate office, a hospital, school or government building, users of aptiQ smart cards enjoy all of the basics of traditional identification badges, combined with features built into the smart cards such as student ID and payment cards, physical and logical access control, time and attendance reporting, membership ID, transit passes and loyalty cards.
“With this alliance, we look forward to providing our customers with even more options to print and encode smart, secure identification credentials,” said Andy Matko, managing director for Ultra Electronics Card Systems. “Just as the aptiQ smart card is very secure, our Magicard range of secure ID card printers are trusted by hundreds of federal, state and local agencies as well as thousands of companies globally to issue millions of secure identification badges every year. Now, customers can have it all – safe cards with secure printing and encoding, combined with a whole new set of features.”
The aptiQ smart card technology fits a variety of uses, including corporate enterprises, small business, schools, higher education institutions, healthcare organizations, local and federal government offices and transportation companies.
Using MIFARE DESFire™ EV1 technology, aptiQ smart cards employ a proven technology for physical and logical security that is trusted by thousands of organizations, including the United States federal government. In addition, aptiQ smart cards have the ability to manage access, payments and many other functions.
MIFARE DESFire EV1 technology offers several distinct layers of security, including mutual authentication, which ensures that the reader and card communicate to verify each other’s identity before any information is exchanged. aptiQ smart cards also provide AES 128-bit encryption, a key encryption technique that helps protect sensitive information. Each card supplies diversified keys, which virtually ensure no one can read or access the holder’s credential information without authorization. A message authentication code (MAC) further protects each transaction between the credential and the reader, ensuring complete and unmodified transfer of information, helping to protect data integrity and prevent outside attacks.
“The need for more secure credentials is a growing concern within the security community,” stresses Ingersoll Rand Security Technologies Director of Technology Alliances Diane Kehlenbeck. “Through our aptiQ Alliance program, we develop collaborative relationships with leading companies such as Ultra Electronics Card Systems, to provide the security market with a broader range of more secure offerings. As a result, we are able to serve all customers better and extend the use of the aptiQ smart cards with new features.”
More information on the aptiQ Alliance is available at http://w3.securitytechnologies.com/irst/alliances/aptiq/Pages/default.aspx.

 the aptiQ Alliance program