Datastrip Mobile ID Reader Adopted for Domestic Preparedness Programs

November 23, 2005 — EXTON, PA – Datastrip’s DSVII-SC, a handheld smart card/biometric reader, is being adopted by first responder and other government security programs to aid inentifying emergency and government workers as well as criminal suspects.  The device is useful for domestic preparedness purposes because of its portability and broad functionality, including support for contact as well as contactless cards, multiple biometric algorithms, text-based emergency notification, and the FIPS 201 standard forentity verification of federal government employees and contractors.

Programs that are currently using or deploying the DSVII-SC include a Texas law enforcement project utilizing Motorola’s mobile Automated Fingerprintentification System (AFIS), a Transportation Worker Card (TWIC) implementation in Florida, a biometric badging system in the Middle East, and a variety of other overseas initiatives.

The Datastrip reader is also being evaluated by other U.S. agencies, including the Department of Homeland Security for use in a FIPS 201-based smart card system in the Washington, D.C. area, and several port authorities that are launching maritime security initiatives to control access to vessels and port facilities.   “Every agency we know of that is looking for mobile readers is using or evaluating our DSVII-SC because it is one of the few wireless units with the horsepower and technical capabilities required for first responder and homeland security applications,” said Melinda Morris, business development manager at Datastrip. “We expect a significant rise in adoptions over the next few months as more agencies finalize their programs.”

The DSVII-SC is a lightweight handheld device that integrates a card reader, a 500 dpi fingerprint sensor, and a large color transflective 240 x 320 pixel touchscreen display that is readable in direct sunlight or low-light conditions. It runs on the Windows CE.NET operating system for easy development of custom applications, and utilizes a SH4 RISC processor that supports fast biometric matching as well as more complex applications.

The reader can be used in conjunction with biometric or non-biometric smart card badges to validate theentities of emergency workers at the scene of an incident, federal workers and contractors at government facilities, and in other environments. Encoded photographs and biographical information stored on the card can be decoded and displayed on the screen, while the fingerprint sensor can compare a live fingerprint against a biometric template stored on the card, the unit’s on-board memory or a back-end database for on-the-spot biometric matching.

The unit can also be used toentify individuals without cards by comparing their live fingerprints to templates stored in an on-board or back-end database, making it possible for police officers to quickly screen suspects in the field without returning to headquarters.The terminal can be used to trigger or receive text-based alerts in the event of a security breach related to fraudulents. It can read both contact and contactless smart cards – including the new HID i® ISO 15693 as well as 14443 and 7816 formats — plus proximity cards, bar codes, magnetic stripes, passports and/or OCR-B data. It supports Cogent, NEC, Motorola’s Printrak,entix and Bioscrypt fingerprint algorithms, plus wireless communication over 802.11, Bluetooth, GSM, GPRS, CDMA and most digital cellular networks.

About Datastrip

Datastrip is a leading provider of biometric verification devices and 2D bar code software with associated hardware. Datastrip and its integration partners provide total solutions for production of cards, passports, national cards, driver’s licenses, voter registration cards, health cards, financial cards, birth certificates and otherentity documents, as well as mobile AFIS and other biometric verification systems.