The other wireless security

Wireless security sure gets its fair share of press these days. Stories on m-commerce and privacy can be found in almost any news outlet.

But what about the other wireless security? The good, old nuts and bolts security?

Security at wireless sites, be it shelters or padlocks or fencing, doesn’t get nearly as much attention as its mobile counterpart. However, some of the most advanced security technology in the world is being touted as a solution for wireless sites.

The future of site security may be found in your fingertips, literally.

“They will be going to some form of biometrics,” said Steve Ishihara, Flextronics Enclosure Systems (www.flextronics.com/enclosure) vice president of network services. “We think of biometrics not only in terms of ingress/egress but also in terms of tracking. I realize it sounds like Big Brother, but the concept isn’t focusing on theft, it’s measuring inventory.”

Ishihara said biometrics could be used not only to open doors using fingerprints or iris scans, but also to track who has what equipment. If a technician took a battery out of a warehouse to replace a dead one at a site, the computer system would know who had the battery and where the battery eventually ended up. It could help prevent inventory loss, he said.

Ray Desrochers, Keyware (www.keyware.com) vice president of engineering, said biometrics allows fast and easy authentication. “It gives them the ability to very quickly and conveniently authenticate people that are trying to get into wherever and at the same time have ultimate conformation,” he said. “This will ultimately replace traditional and more archaic solutions; solutions that are prone to failure, to be quite honest with you.”

So far, wireless carriers have been turned off by biometrics because of the cost. Instead, many are using electronic, tracking locks that allow them to know who enters what sites. But, down the road, biometric solutions will become more affordable and still be able to know exactly who entered what area at what time, Desrochers said.

“And, the way to do that and the way to be absolutely certain of that, is to deploy true authentication: biometric technology,” he said.