iD2 Technologies joins EU backed project to ensure interoperability of e-signature products and services across Europe.

M2 PRESSWIRE-16 February 2000-ID2 TECHNOLOGIES: iD2 Technologies joins EU backed project to ensure interoperability of e-signature products and services across Europe (C)1994-2000 M2 COMMUNICATIONS LTD

RDATE:16022000

* Electronic Signature Test-suit for Interoperability (ESTIO) to develop tools for e-signature compatibility testing

A consortium of European organisations and academics, including iD2 Technologies, a leading developer of PKI (public key infrastructure) solutions that help identify users across open networks such as the Internet, has launched an EU backed project to investigate the interoperability of e-signature products and services used within European PKIs.

ESTIO, a 12 month project, aims to specify and build a set of tools that will make developers looking to offer e-signature technology aware of potential compatibility problems that may arise when their products or services are used alongside those of other manufacturers. The tools will also allow the products to be tested for compatibility with Certification Authorities (CA).

"Digital identification technologies are being integrated into a number of next- generation devices, including wireless technologies like mobile phones and PDAs, all designed to allow users to conduct remote, mobile e-business," explains Simon Corell, PKI Evangelist, Product Marketing at iD2 Technologies.

"What this means is that there is a growing number of technologies, standards, policies and storage devices all being developed with little consideration for interoperability. By ensuring all of these emerging technologies are compatible with each other we can create a huge opportunity for both next generation devices and services.

"iD2 is already closely involved with a number of standardisation activities. ESTIO aims to ensure that a complete set of tools is in place for future developers to use. This will enable them to ensure that their services are recognised and compatible on an international level. We also hope that the European Commission and other standardisation bodies will select the consortium's methodologies, services and tools," finishes Corell.

ESTIO will focus on advanced electronic signature generation and verification services and the tools used to guarantee the quality of the issued signature.

Its tools will be flexible enough to support the verification of both ISO (International Organisation for Standardisation) and IETF (Internet Engineering Task Force) formats.

The consortium comprises Universitat Politecnica de Catalunya (UPC), Baltimore Technologies, Forschungszentrum Informationstechnik, Laboratori General d'Assaigs I Investigacions (LGAI), SECUDE, Safelayer Secure Communications and iD2 Technologies.

Notes to editors: About iD2 Technologies iD2 Technologies develops and sells a complete set of tools and software to enable secure transactions and identification on the Internet. The company, owned by Cisco, Ericsson, Reuters, SAP and Schroder Ventures, has clients in banking, telecommunications, government and postal services throughout Europe and Asia.

iD2 Technologies has more than 10 years experience in developing IT solutions and products in combination with PKI and smart card technologies and has won the European Grand IT Prize for its certification management software, iD2 Certificate Manager.

The company has offices in Stockholm, London and Munich. More information on iD2 can be found at www.iD2tech.com

CONTACT: Tim Smith, PR Manager, iD2 Technologies Tel: +44 (0)7957 311 189 e-mail: tim.smith@iD2tech.com WWW: http://www.iD2tech.com

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