Thursby PKard Reader Apple iPad/iPhone CAC/PIV Secure Browser Earns FIPS 140-2 Validation

Arlington, TX, June 26, 2012 --(PR.com)-- Thursby Software Systems, the leading provider of security, management and integration solutions for Apple Mac, iPad and iPhone devices, today announced that its free PKard® Reader app for secure web browsing has been awarded the Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS) 140-2 validation from the Cryptographic Module Validation Program, a joint effort between the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the Communications Security Establishment (CSE) of the Government of Canada. PKard Reader is the first iPad/iPhone browser to earn this important industry distinction.

Thursby’s PKard Reader solution lets people securely access web-based email, portals and collaboration sites using U.S. Government issued CAC, PIV or other approved smart cards and approved readers such as Thursby’s own $149.99 hardware, the most widely deployed solution for iPad/iPhone smart card Identity, Credentials and Access Management (ICAM). The app is plug’n’play, requiring no proprietary new server or cloud software, or payment of ongoing fees. The “Miltary CAC” web site, the leading source of CAC-related information for military personnel, sums up its appeal as “the only product that enables use of CAC cards with iPhone and iPad that is easy to use and affordable.”

Paul Nelson, Thursby’s Chief Technical Officer (CTO), explains, “Validation is a requirement for government customers but from an enterprise security perspective, the most important considerations are (a) that the cryptos in the app are validated end-to-end, from handling of certificates, to establishment of trust, to the securing of data, and (b) that these capabilities, along with validation, can be extended to third party apps via our upcoming Software Development Kit (SDK).” Apple’s built-in browser, email and VPN software are not FIPS 140-2 validated, do not work with smart cards, or card reader accessories.

Steve Marquess, President of the OpenSSL Software Foundation, expands "Thanks to an effective collaboration with Thursby Software, the OpenSSL Software Foundation has been able to extend the scope and utility of the world's most widely used open source cryptographic library [to Apple iOS 5 and also Apple OS X 10.7 Lion]. Thursby has demonstrated the increased value that can be delivered to their customers by leveraging and combining the strengths of open source and commercial software to produce best-of-breed software products."

About Thursby Software Systems, Inc.
We are celebrating over a quarter century of enterprise Apple integration, management and security, adding smart card enablement from the mid 2000s for clients from the Pentagon and US Army to the National Institutes of Health, with over 60,000 clients and over a million licenses sold to-date. Clients come from all seven continents and range from government, to finance, healthcare, energy, Global 2000 companies, education, research, media and OEMs. For more information about Thursby and its solutions visit www.thursby.com.

About OpenSSL Project
The OpenSSL Project is a collaborative effort to develop a robust, commercial-grade, full-featured, and Open Source toolkit implementing the Secure Sockets Layer (SSL v2/v3) and Transport Layer Security (TLS v1) protocols as well as a full-strength general purpose cryptography library. The project is managed by a worldwide community of volunteers that use the Internet to communicate, plan, and develop the OpenSSL toolkit and its related documentation. For more information about OpenSSL and its solutions visit www.openssl.org.