Sun Microsystems and Aware, Inc. Announce Integration of Aware's BioSP with Sun Identity Management Solutions

Sun Microsystems, Inc. and Aware, Inc. (Nasdaq: AWRE), a global provider of biometrics software, today announced the integration of Aware's Biometric Services Platform (BioSP(TM)) with Sun identity management solutions. The integration of BioSP with Sun Java System Identity Manager introduces a next-generation biometrics-enabled identity management solution with comprehensive biometric capabilities for delivering Personal Identity Verification (PIV) and other mission-critical biometric identity assurance solutions. The integration of BioSP with Sun Java System Access Manager enables fingerprint-based biometric authentication for establishing single sign-on (SSO) and identity federation. BioSP leverages over fifteen years of technical leadership in the biometrics industry towards a complete biometric solution that addresses the ever-advancing demands of the identity assurance marketplace.

"Bridging the gap between physical and logical access is one of the biggest challenges facing our U.S. and Global Government customers. They will benefit from the integration of leading Identity Lifecycle Management applications that are in compliance with HSPD-12/PIV and ICAO standards," said Bill Vass, President and Chief Operations Officer, Sun Microsystems Federal, Inc. "Combined with Sun's strength in identity-based security and management, Aware's BioSP helps Sun with biometric enrollment and enabling biometric credentials for smartcard issuance and multi-factor authentication."

"The completion of this project caps off a substantial effort by technical staff of both companies to deliver and deploy an identity management solution with comprehensive biometric capabilities," commented Robert Mungovan, Vice President of Aware's Biometrics and Imaging Group. "Its modular, service-oriented design makes it uniquely flexible and easy to deploy for both government and private sector credentialing and identity assurance applications."

Together with Aware's biometric enrollment software components on a client, BioSP enables Sun Identity Management Suite with advanced biometric functionality, including:

• fingerprint, face, and iris autocapture and enrollment
• standards-compliant formatting and parsing of interoperable biometric data structures
• secure transport and archival of biometric images, templates, and metadata
• biometric authentication for enterprise and Web-based applications
• connectivity with FBI IAFIS and OPM for fingerprint-based background checks
• connectivity with card management systems and certificate authorities

BioSP has been verified and integration-tested with Java Enterprise System Release 5 running on Solaris 10 and Solaris 10 Trusted Extensions. Aware BioSP also delivers wire-speed performance on transport/message-level security by taking advantage of on-chip cryptographic acceleration provided by Sun SPARC Enterprise T5120 and T5220 systems.

BioSP is a modular, flexible, server-based software platform that enables developers and integrators to rapidly build and deploy centralized multimodal biometric data processing solutions in support of a service-oriented architecture (SOA). BioSP facilitates automation by using biometric and biographic data to drive related business processes. It is ideally suited for applications that require the collection of biometrics throughout a distributed network, and subsequent aggregation, analysis, processing, and integration of this data with other enterprise solutions. Examples include the use of remote enrollment workstations to capture biometric data and submit it to a central database, IDMS, CMS, or a biometric identification system. BioSP can manage all aspects of the transaction workflow, including messaging, submissions, responses, and logging.

The Sun Java System Identity Management Suite is at the core of the Sun Java Enterprise System, a revolutionary, open-source, subscription-based approach to infrastructure software that reduces cost and complexity throughout the data center. The suite includes Sun Java System Identity Manager, Sun Java System Access Manager, Sun Java System Role Manager and Sun Java System Directory Server Enterprise Edition. The Sun Java Enterprise System runs as part of the Solaris Enterprise System, the only comprehensive and open infrastructure software platform available today. It also runs on other leading platforms such as Windows and Linux.

Aware is a veteran of the biometrics industry, providing biometric and imaging software components used in government systems worldwide since 1992. Aware's interoperable, standard-compliant, field-proven imaging products are used in a number of applications, from border management to criminal justice to medical imaging. Aware is also a leading technology supplier for the telecommunications industries. For more than ten years, Aware has pioneered innovations at telecommunications standards-setting organizations and continues to develop and market DSL silicon intellectual property and test and diagnostics products. Its StratiPHY(TM) IP product line supports DSL standards, including ADSL2+ and VDSL2, and has been broadly licensed to leading semiconductor companies. Telecom equipment vendors and phone companies use Aware's DSL test and diagnostics modules and Dr. DSL(R) software to help provision DSL circuits globally.

Sun Microsystems develops the technologies that power the global marketplace. Guided by a singular vision -- "The Network is the Computer" -- Sun drives network participation through shared innovation, community development and open source leadership.

Source: Sun Microsystems, Inc.