HONG KONG, September 9, 2003 - Baltimore Technologies (London: BLM), a global leader in e-security, and TrustedWorld(tm) partner HP today announced that Hongkong Post has chosen Baltimore UniCERT(tm) as the Certificate Authority (CA) to issue and manage e-Certs, the digital credentials that will be embedded in the new Hong Kong ID card (Smart ID). Baltimore UniCERT will manage the complex registration requirement of issuing over 4 million e-Certs in the next four years.
Smart ID is a strategic Hong Kong e-government initiative designed to enable all citizens engage and exchange information electronically with the government in an easy and efficient manner. It will be offered to the entire Hong Kong population, phased in to replace the existing, paper-based ID card. e-Cert is a digital certificate used to authenticate online transactions, providing a secure, convenient platform for e-commerce. It also enables users to generate digital signatures, which enjoy the same legal status in Hong Kong as handwritten signatures under the Electronic Transactions Ordinance. As well as the Smart ID application, Hongkong Post also plans to launch a number of PKI-based e-government services, including e-payments, through the second half of this year.
"Baltimore's open, standards-based PKI technology together with their expertise as a leading provider of high-end trust infrastructure to the e-government sector worldwide, enable us to work with the Hong Kong government to provide more cost efficient and effective services," said Casey Poon, General Manager, HP Services. "In addition, Baltimore's track record of successful Identity Card deployments has made them our partner of choice."
Poon further added, " We are deeply committed to the long-term growth of Hong Kong as the IT hub of Asia. We see the e-Cert on Smart ID Card project as a highly strategic initiative for HP in Hong Kong, helping to elevate our city's digital security leadership in this region."
"Baltimore is at the forefront of delivering high-end trust infrastructures to the world's leading e-government projects," said Gavan Egan, Senior Vice President Asia Pacific for Baltimore Technologies. "We are delighted to work with HP to deliver this strategic project and to further underpin our long-term commitment to the region."
Baltimore's regional headquarters are also located in Hong Kong and key Baltimore customers in the region include Hongkong Post, JETCo and Tradelink in Hong Kong, TaiwanCA, TradeVan and the Legislative Yuan in Taiwan, the Macau government, the Korean Information Certificate Authority and Chohung Bank in Korea.
About Hongkong Post
To enable the development of electronic commerce in Hong Kong, Hongkong Post has created a public key infrastructure (PKI) and established on 31 January 2000 the first public Certification Authority (CA) in Hong Kong.
As empowered by S34 of the Electronic Transaction Ordinance (ETO), the Postmaster General is a recognised certification authority in Hong Kong.
Hongkong Post issues digital certificates, namely Hongkong Post e-Certs, to individuals and businesses to authenticate the identity of the subscribers over the Internet. Hongkong Post issues various types of e-Cert, namely Personal, Organisational, Encipherment, Server and Mobile e-Cert. Hongkong Post CA maintains a certificate repository and directory to allow the public to verify the validity of a particular Hongkong Post e-Cert prior to carrying out transactions. These services provide a secure and reliable environment for the conduct of electronic commerce in Hong Kong.
The Hongkong Post e-Cert may be used for electronic government services or commercial electronic transactions in the fields of banking, finance, telecommunications, entertainment, education, health etc.
About HP
HP is a leading global provider of products, technologies, solutions and services to consumers and businesses. The company's offerings span IT infrastructure, personal computing and access devices, global services and imaging and printing. HP completed its acquisition of HP Computer Corporation on May 3, 2002. More information about HP is available at http://www.hp.com.hk/.
About Baltimore Technologies
Baltimore Technologies' products, services and solutions address the fundamental security needs of e-business in distributed environments.
Baltimore's e-security technology enables companies to verify the identity of electronic counterparties and securely manages which resources and information users can access through open networks. Many of the world's leading organisations in Finance and Government have deployed Baltimore's e-security technology to enable e-business over fixed and wireless networks.
Baltimore also offers worldwide support for its authorization management and public key-based authentication products.
Baltimore's products, services and solutions are sold directly as well as through its worldwide partner network, Baltimore TrustedWorld(tm). Baltimore Technologies is a public company, listed on the London Stock Exchange (BLM).
For more information on Baltimore Technologies, please visit http://www.baltimore.com
Media Contacts - Baltimore Technologies:
Irene Dehaene Tony Pun
Baltimore Technologies Baltimore Technologies (Hong
Kong)
Tel: +353 1 881 6435 Tel: +852 2168 9511
Email: irene.dehaene@baltimore.com Email:
tony.pun@baltimore.com
Media Contacts - HP Hong Kong Ltd.
Teresa Chow
Hewlett-Packard HK SAR Ltd.
Tel:+852 2805 3159
Email: teresa.chow@hp.com
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Trademarks
UniCERT is a trademark of Baltimore Technologies plc. All other product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.
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