OTTAWA, ONTARIO — (Marketwire) — 11/06/12 — GTEC (booth #527) SecureKey Technologies Inc. today announced the launch of , an innovative Credential Broker Service that allows Canadians to use their bank authentication credentials to access online services from the Government of Canada. Three of Canada-s largest banks, BMO Financial Group, Scotiabank, and TD Bank Group are the initial Trusted Sign-In Partners, with other financial institutions expected to follow in the coming months.
The new service is part of the Government of Canada-s Cyber Authentication Renewal initiative. No passwords or personal information (i.e.: name, address, date of birth, etc.) are exchanged. Trusted Sign-In Partners won-t know which government service is being accessed and the government won-t know which Trusted Sign-In Partner is being used. SecureKey Concierge is subject to the Privacy Act and the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA).
“SecureKey Concierge is the result of an innovative collaboration between SecureKey Technologies and leading Canadian Financial Institutions”, said SecureKey Chairman, Greg Wolfond. “It provides exceptional convenience for consumers by reducing the number of usernames and passwords that they need to remember. At the same time, SecureKey Concierge reduces the cost for government in regards to issuing, storing and managing their own online user credentials.”
Consumers are managing dozens, sometimes hundreds, of increasingly complex login IDs, and using them interchangeably with many online services, actually increasing their risk and exposure to damaging online attacks. SecureKey Concierge mitigates these risks by using existing credentials that consumers have and use frequently from their banks (Trusted Sign-In Partners), who actively manage and monitor security for their customers far beyond other conventional providers of online credentials. It also forms the basis for a broader ecosystem for other governments and public and private sector organizations that could benefit from shared authentication by Trusted Sign-In Partners.
Many Government of Canada departments have already implemented SecureKey Concierge, allowing millions of citizens to use Trusted Sign-In Partners to access federal government services online.
“BMO sees this as a natural extension of the services we offer our customers,” said David Heatherly, VP, Payment Products, BMO Financial Group. “Our participation gives customers a secure, simple and trusted verification process for accessing government services online. It builds off the investments we have already made in Chip and PIN, and related technologies for simpler, but more secure, online authentication.”
“In today-s fast-paced world with more and more logins and passwords required in every part of day-to-day life, Scotiabank is pleased to partner with a service that makes it easier for our customers,” said Mike Henry, Scotiabank-s Senior Vice-President and Head of Canadian Retail Payments, Deposits and Lending. “Now, when accessing federal government services online, our customers can simply use their Scotiabank ID and password along with the peace of mind that their personal information is securely protected.”
“SecureKey Concierge complements TD-s already extensive list of services that are focused on customer convenience,” said Paal Kaperdal, SVP, Online Banking, TD Bank Group. “This partnership enables our customers to access online government services in a secure, comfortable format, and is a great example of how government and industry are working together to create innovative solutions for Canadians.”
Watch the video overview of SecureKey Concierge here: or, for more information, visit:
SecureKey provides an innovative platform-as-a-service for authentication, payment and identity. By embedding its security client in laptops, tablets, and mobile devices, SecureKey enables partners to deliver scalable, easy-to-use solutions with the security of chip-based identity and payment credentials. Financial institutions, healthcare providers, telecoms, and government organizations are using SecureKey today to provide two-factor and federated authentication and identity solutions. SecureKey is a privately-held company based in Toronto, Canada, with backing from leading technology, payments and mobile industry network providers. For more information visit .
Established in 1817 as Bank of Montreal, BMO Financial Group is a highly diversified North American financial services organization. With total assets of $542 billion as at July 31, 2012, and more than 46,000 employees, BMO Financial Group provides a broad range of retail banking, wealth management and investment banking products and solutions.
Scotiabank is one of North America-s premier financial institutions and Canada-s most international bank. With more than 81,000 employees, Scotiabank and its affiliates serve some 19 million customers in more than 55 countries around the world. Scotiabank offers a broad range of products and services including personal, commercial, corporate and investment banking. With assets of $670 billion (as at July 31, 2012), Scotiabank trades on the Toronto (BNS) and New York Exchanges (BNS). For more information please visit .
The Toronto-Dominion Bank and its subsidiaries are collectively known as TD Bank Group (TD). TD is the sixth largest bank in North America by branches and serves approximately 22 million customers in four key businesses operating in a number of locations in key financial centres around the globe: Canadian Personal and Commercial Banking, including TD Canada Trust and TD Auto Finance Canada; Wealth and Insurance, including TD Waterhouse, an investment in TD Ameritrade, and TD Insurance; U.S. Personal and Commercial Banking, including TD Bank, America-s Most Convenient Bank, and TD Auto Finance U.S.; and Wholesale Banking, including TD Securities. TD also ranks among the world-s leading online financial services firms, with approximately 8.5 million online customers. TD had CDN$806 billion in assets on July 31, 2012. The Toronto-Dominion Bank trades under the symbol “TD” on the Toronto and New York Stock Exchanges.
GTEC, the Government Technology Exhibition and Conference, is now in its 19th year and is produced in Ottawa by UBM TechWeb. The event includes a professional development conference, a major exhibition, the Distinction Awards Gala and an international delegates program. Over the past five years, GTEC has explored “Government 2.0” as a way for governments to integrate Web 2.0 technologies into their service transformation efforts. More information on GTEC can be found at .
Contacts:
SecureKey Technologies Inc.
Joanne Gore
Director, Marketing Communications
+1.416.543.7951
SecureKey Technologies Inc.
Andre Boysen
EVP, Digital Identity & Government Solutions
+1.647.287.2544
Corman Communications, LLC
Patrick Corman
+1.650.326.9648
TD Bank Group
Laura Mergelas
Corporate and Public Affairs
+1.416.983.1514
BMO Financial Group
Ralph Marranca
Director, Corporate Media Relations and Issues Management
+1.416.867.3996
Scotiabank
Patty Stathokostas
Media Communications
+1.416.866.3625
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