BluStor to launch CyberGate Secure Mobile Briefcase in March

BluStor has announced that it will begin shipping its CyberGate Secure Mobile Briefcase (SMB) next month.

The SMB will ship in March, with a special introductory discount price of US$179.95 being offered for the first 1,000 units sold. All 1,000 units will include BluStor firmware, the GateKeeper application, and a software development kit, with free downloadable application upgrades for 12 months.

The Secure Mobile Briefcase is a sophisticated, wireless, personal biometric identification and data storage card that fits into a wallet or purse. Supporting multi-factor biometric authentication, the card replaces, or can augment, traditional usernames, passwords, and PIN numbers with an ultra-secure, multi-factor biometric authentication system. The system securely stores data only on the device, ensuring that personal information is never exposed to a mobile device or a cloud-based service environment.

“Usernames, passwords, PINs or a single fingerprint captured by a smartphone or tablet have proven inadequate to protect an individual’s ID or their data,” said Finis Conner, the firm’s founder and CEO. “In fact, sufficiently securing mobile devices, cloud-based solutions or the growing number of products being developed within the Internet of Things industry is virtually impossible. However, returning control of ID and authentication to the user is the answer.”

The card is used in conjunction with a mobile app called GateKeeper, which allows users to safely secure all key data and documents on the card. The app allows users to securely protect all of their usernames, passwords, login details, and personal identity information.

Conner claims that in an increasingly mobile world, the CyberGate solution sets itself apart by returning control of digital identity, privacy and data access to its rightful owner: “The real solution involves securing the identity of the individual using those platforms with multiple biometrics rather than trying to secure every device or the billions of potential endpoints in our connected world.”

The CyberGate app contains a file vault that allows users to safely store important documents, including photos, medical records, e-mail and other personal data. The app also contains a credit card vault that allows users to store their credit card information and securely retrieve it when needed for online transactions. Most importantly, the mobile app contains its own one time password (OTP) and two-factor authentication (2FA) token generator that allows users to leverage biometrics rather than PIN codes to generate RFC 6238 compatible security tokens in order to log into supported Web sites.

As reported previously by BiometricUpdate.com, BluStor launched its marquee product through an Indiegogo campaign that raised consumer awareness about the technology. Conner stated that the main driver behind the card was to develop a system that allowed users to retain control over their personal financial data and only provide it one-time when required for a transaction.

As the legendary co-founder of Seagate Technology, Conner was a key pioneer in the design, manufacturing and sales of hard disk technology, including the first 5.25-inch hard drive used in the Macintosh. Conner later started his eponymously named company, Conner Peripherals, and went on to develop the 3.5-inch drive for PCs.

While he was able to reduce the size of storage devices, thereby enabling greater user mobility during the first generations of personal computing, a key component that wasn’t addressed was security for mobile storage devices themselves and securely controlling data use.

Fast-forward to the present day and Conner and his company has now achieved this goal. Through a crowdfunded process, he was able to develop a solution to satisfy today’s computing and security needs. This time, with the CyberGate SMB, Conner and his team have built a platform that can answer the two questions necessary in virtually every digital transaction in the mobile world: “Are you who you say you are? and “Are you authorized to do what you are requesting?”

The BluStor CyberGate platform is a patented, fully functional computer equipped with tremendous power in the form of a 32-bit ARM processor; 8GB of storage capacity; a multitude of standard interfaces such as Bluetooth/Bluetooth Low Energy, NFC and USB; government-level encryption; and a rechargeable battery with a two-year life.

Article Topics

biometric authentication  |  biometrics  |  BluStor  |  data storage  |  Finis Conner  |  mobile app  |  mobile device  |  multi-factor authentication  |  privacy  |  SDK  |  smart card