Munich, Germany – Giesecke & Devrient (G&D) has been selected by chip manufacturer, Intel to deliver lifecycle management of the embedded Secure Elements within Intel’s Smartphone Reference Device. These provide an additional protected area for security-sensitive applications such as payments and ticketing using NFC (Near Field Communications) technology. Global security technology specialists G&D will manage the partitioning and key management of the embedded Secure Elements Over-the-Air.
Intel has included an embedded Secure Element in its recently announced Smartphone Reference Device, in addition to the conventional SIM card slot. This protected area is said to provide security comparable to the levels found within smart cards such as EMV credit cards and SIM cards, so providing users of mobile devices an added degree of security and convenience for new use cases including contactless payments in shops.
G&D will act as Trusted Service Manager (TSM) for the Secure Element Issuer (SEI-TSM) providing the lifecycle management of the embedded Secure Elements. G&D’s SEI-TSM will interface with Service Provider TSMs (SP-TSMs) that enable the trusted delivery of applications to the embedded Secure Element on behalf of service providers such as banks, mobile network operators and transit authorities. G&D’s TSM solutions are already supporting numerous secure services on behalf of customers such as network operators, banks and transit authorities.
Intel showcased its Smartphone Reference Device at the International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in the US in January and in Barcelona, Spain at Mobile World Congress, demonstrating support for NFC.
The embedded Secure Element in Intel’s platforms, in conjunction with the SEI-TSM service operated by G&D, offers a trusted end-to-end mechanism to realise the benefits of NFC. This service infrastructure can interface with any GlobalPlatform standards-based Service Provider TSM to facilitate the secure delivery and personalisation of mobile applications for financial institutions, transit authorities, enterprises, and any other service providers wishing to benefit from NFC.
“Intel’s strategy is to enable an open NFC and open wallet ecosystem to ensure interoperability across financial institutions, mobile device OEMs, mobile network operators and payment processors. We have designed a mobile commerce-ready Intel Smartphone Reference Device that can support open, flexible delivery of NFC services,” said Mike Bell (pictured), Intel vice president and general manager of Intel’s Mobile and Communications Group. “Our strategic relationship with Giesecke & Devrient enables this new ecosystem with the mutual goal of making NFC services ubiquitous, secure and successful for all stakeholders.”
Michael Kuemmerle, member of the Management Board and Group Executive of Mobile Security at G&D, said: “By combining the Secure Element as an integral part of Intel’s Smartphone Reference Device with G&D’s secure TSM services and our long-standing trusted partnerships with banks, mobile network operators and transit authorities across the world, we are ideally positioned to support this evolving ecosystem. We are very pleased to have formed a strategic alliance with Intel to bring innovative mobile products and services to the market.”
Giesecke & Devrient (G&D) is headquartered in Munich, Germany. Founded in 1852, the group now has a workforce of over 10,000 employees and generated sales of EUR 1.7 billion in fiscal 2010. The group includes 61 subsidiaries and joint ventures in 32 countries. G&D is a global leader in the production and processing of banknotes and banknote paper, security documents, identification systems and smartcard-based solutions. And as an end-to-end provider of mobile security applications, G&D develops and sells hardware, software, and services for banks, mobile network operators, public transportation companies, business enterprises, and Original Equipment Manufacturers.
