PrimeKey introduces Identity Authority Manager to secure digital identities in Smart Manufacturing environments

SAN MATEO, Calif., April 21, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- PrimeKey, a world-leading provider  of Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) and digital signature solutions, announces the launch of Identity Authority Manager - Industrial (IdAM) this April. With the IPC-based appliance, it is possible for the first time ever to integrate PKI functions for issuing and managing digital identities directly at the point of production. With the IdAM, digital identities can be issued during production – for example, in the form of X.509 certificates. An introduction and initial look into the technology will be given in two webinars this April and May.

PrimeKey has offered PKI expertise and security solutions involving digital identities since 2001 and now adds to their portfolio this solution designed to make secure certificate issuance in Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) a reality. In a networked production environment, each component has to "know and trust" each other, and "identify" themselves with their digital identity. The innovation is now to move the Registration Authority (RA) functionality of a PKI directly to the point of production. An identity registration point is installed at the point of production. The IPC-based appliance addresses the need to secure the entire product lifecycle. The demand for this, particularly in IoT industries within the automotive, energy, health and automation sectors, exists and is constantly growing.

Dealing with digital identities

Until now components and systems in connected solutions have received their "identity card" after or before their production. For example, when SE (Secure Elements) or TPM (Trusted Platform Modules) chips are pre-personalized with "product" certificates, then relevant data about the final product is not available. This data is only available when the actual final product is produced. The PrimeKey Identity Authority Manager now significantly increases the level of security by providing and implementing the digital identity, for example, as a certificate in X.509 standard for a product during production.

The most important features:

PKI registration function for smart production

During production, a component first asks the Identity Authority Manager for the certificate. This validates the digital identity of the components. It uses a random generator to generate the keys and Certificate Signing Requests (CSR) and transmits the CSR to the Certification Authority (CA) of the PKI. Finally, the certificate is implemented in the component.

The secured separation between OT and IT

The Identity Authority Manager strictly separates Operational Technology (OT) from IT. Any cyberattack cannot, therefore, jump from the office network to the production network.

Future-proof thanks to open interfaces

The IdAM also supports all known cryptographic algorithms and offers three external main interfaces for device adapters and trusted service adapters as well as to the sequence controller. Thus, identity verification can be flexibly modeled and adapted in a trustworthy way to the production process.

The secure added value

"Identity Authority Manager – Industrial provides an innovative mechanism for trusted digital identities, issuing 'birth certificates' or other identities during the production process. This approach will become an integral part of IIoT and Smart Factory," said Tomas Gustavsson, CTO at PrimeKey. "For the first time, it is possible to implement a trustworthy product strategy based on an intelligent and secure supply chain. Smart devices in production with the appropriate certificates and identities are now able to check software updates and licenses for integrity and authenticity. Manufacturers of a product and transmitters of software can be clearly identified, which puts a stop to product plagiarism."

Two webinars provide deep practical insights

PrimeKey will accompany the market launch of its new, first-of-its-kind, industrial PKI solution with two webinars:

• "Securing Industry 4.0 – Introducing the first industrial PKI solution to secure smart supply chains"; April 28, 2020, 4:00 p.m. CET, 45 minutes, free registration and participation here, industry executives will learn, among other things, how to model unique publishing processes for identity discovery, how to put them into operation and how to redesign them as soon as the production process needs to be updated.
• "What's inside the PrimeKey Identity Authority Manager – a techie's dream"; May 12, 2020, 4:00 p.m. CET, 45 minutes, free registration and participation here. The focus lies on typical product identities as well as the functions of the Identity Authority Manager and its connection to PKI. In addition, the focus will be on formulating a modern IIoT product strategy and implementing the security functions with the Identity Authority Manager.

PrimeKey Tech Days 2020

The sixth edition of the PrimeKey Tech Days will be September 15-16, 2020*. PKI and security executives from around the world will be explaining and discussing the latest in cryptography, PKI and related IT security topics. The hardcore technology event will feature live presentations by experts from leading global companies and hands-on demos showing PKI in action.

Two highlights are available the day before. Two technical workshops will take place on September 14, in Solna, Sweden, at PrimeKey's headquarters. Experts from PrimeKey will lead and moderate:

• "PrimeKey Identity Authority Manager Workshop", 1:30 p.m. – 3:30 p.m CET.
• "PrimeKey SEE Workshop", 4:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m CET.

To go deeper into the concepts explored with Identity Authority Manager and Secure Execution Environments (SEE), the participation is limited to 15 people each.

*Information about the event will be updated at PrimeKey.com/tech-days if needed to account for travel restrictions and policies.

Press briefing offering

For all questions regarding the launch of Identity Authority Manager, including webinars and PrimeKey Tech Days, a meeting with PrimeKey Business Development Manager Andreas Philipp can be arranged. If you are interested, please send a message to [email protected] or call us at (+46) 835-8118.

About PrimeKey

PrimeKey is one of the world's leading PKI and signing solutions providers and has developed a number of innovative products, including EJBCA® Enterprise, SignServer Enterprise, PKI Appliance, PrimeKey SEE, and Identity Authority Manager. As a pioneer in open-source security software, PrimeKey provides global businesses and organizations the ability to implement vital security solutions, such as e-ID, e-Passports, authentication, digital signatures, unified digital identities, and validation. All PrimeKey products are Common Criteria and FIPS-certified, the company's internal processes are ISO 9001, 14001, and 27001 certified, and it has numerous Webtrust/ETSI and eIDAS-audited installations.

PrimeKey has offices in Stockholm, Sweden; Aachen, Germany; San Mateo, USA; and Melbourne, Australia. With a global network of technology and reselling partners, PrimeKey supports a customer roster that includes industry-leading companies and institutions across the IT, telecommunications, industry, finance and public sectors. For more information, please visit https://www.primekey.com/

For media inquiries, please contact:

Lindsey Oredsson
PrimeKey Communications Coordinator
[email protected]

SOURCE PrimeKey

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