Cryptonite in Paris: Party and networking on the Seine

Cryptonite in Paris: Party and networking on the Seine

After last year’s Trustech in Cannes had fallen victim to the pandemic, it celebrated a comeback in the heart of Paris. cryptovision was also on site and – true to tradition – invited selected customers and partners to the famous Cryptonite party on the evening of December 1st. During a night cruise on the Seine, 100 hand-picked guests enjoyed champagne and petits fours in front of a fascinating backdrop. Participants came from Europe, Africa, North and South America. For the first time, they were also able to exchange ideas with top managers from the new cryptovision owner Atos.

The following video gives some impressions of this extraordinary event:

 

Trade fairs and conferences in which cryptovision participates: https://cryptovision.com/en/events/

 

cryptovision customer Ghana is included in the ICAO public key directory

cryptovision customer Ghana is included in the ICAO public key directory

The African country Ghana has now been accepted into the ICAO Public Key Directory. Ghana has become the 79th nation listed. cryptovision has played a major role in the preparation of this achievement, providing both software solutions and consulting.

Since 2011, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) has been operating a database for which each authorized state provides a cryptographic key: the ICAO Public Key Directory (PKD). With the keys in this database, forged electronic identity documents can be easily detected. However, inclusion in the ICAO PKD is subject to strict conditions. In particular, the production and issuance of identity documents in the country concerned must meet high security requirements.

After Ghana fulfilled all these requirements, the ICAO included the country’s key in their PKD in mid-October. cryptovision is especially proud of this, as the Gelsenkirchen-based company has built the cryptographic infrastructure for the Ghanaian identity document (Ghana Card). For instance, the authority issuing digital certificates for the Ghana Card is operated with the cryptovision product CAmelot.

cryptovision’s client in Ghana is a public-private partnership consisting of the residents authority NIA and the Margins Group. Members of these two organizations will attend their first ICAO PKD Board meeting in Amsterdam from October 27-28.

cryptovision has been active in Africa for more than ten years and has carried out numerous projects there in the field of electronic identity documents. The inclusion of Ghana into the ICAO Public Key Directory shows again that cryptovision can build complex cryptographic solutions that meet stringent regulatory requirements.

List of PKD participants: https://www.icao.int/Security/FAL/PKD/Pages/ICAO-PKDParticipants.aspx

This text has been corrected. In the original text the term “ePassport” was used when the correct description is “electronic identity document”.

 

GreenShield version 1.2.3 receives VS-NfD approval

GreenShield version 1.2.3 receives VS-NfD approval

The countdown is on! On December 31, 2021, the VS-NfD approval of the widely used encryption software Chiasmus will end. If you are still looking for a successor solution, GreenShield from cryptovision is the first choice. With GreenShield you can encrypt both emails and files in a VS-NfD compliant manner – easier and more user-friendly than was ever possible with Chiasmus.

Unlike Chiasmus, which runs as standalone software, GreenShield is implemented as an add-in for Microsoft Outlook, HCL Notes and Windows. It integrates seamlessly with the user’s email program or operating system, making it particularly intuitive and easy to use. Handling passwords is more convenient than with Chiasmus, as the user does not need to obtain or create a key file for this purpose. Smartcards or tokens can be used for asymmetric encryption.

Since a few days the new GreenShield version 1.2.3 is VS-NfD approved (BSI-VSA-10600). With this version, among others, the smartcards Atos CardOS DI 5.4 QES, G&D SmartCafé Expert 7 with ePassletSuite 3.0 as well as Telesec TCOS 4.0 can now be used in approved operation. As cryptovision always attaches great importance to usability, the developers have also further improved the user guidance of GreenShield and made it even more intuitive. For example, the user now receives practical support if GreenShield is unable to assign a suitable recipient key – even though this rarely occurs. Chiasmus detachment is made even more convenient by these innovations.

Are you interested in replacing Chiasmus with GreenShield? Then contact us. Government agencies can also order GreenShield directly through the Kaufhaus des Bundes (RV# 21230).

Replace chiasmus with GreenShield (German): https://www.cryptovision.com/en/products/security-applications/greenshield/

cryptovision employee Klaus Schmeh gives lecture at TeleTrusT Signaturtag

cryptovision employee Klaus Schmeh gives lecture at TeleTrusT Signaturtag

The Corona break was long, but since autumn 2021 trade fairs and congresses have been held again in the computer industry. Also cryptovision is happy about this piece of regained normality. Last week cryptovision employee Klaus Schmeh took the opportunity and made his way to Berlin for a lecture. At the Signaturtag, organized by TeleTrusT and VOI, he gave a presentation on the topic “The three most important post-quantum signature procedures explained clearly”.

Schmeh’s goal of making the subject of post-quantum cryptography understandable to laypersons is no easy task, because the various procedures are mathematically extremely demanding. In the meantime, it has become clear which of the many dozens of post-quantum methods will prevail in practice. Among the favorites are also five signature methods that have already been standardized or have reached the final round in the post-quantum competition of the U.S. authority NIST. Schmeh presented three of these algorithms in his talk.

For his presentation, the long-time cryptovision employee used, as usual, his original slides in cartoon design and vivid analogies from everyday life. Even listeners without a mathematics or computer science degree got an idea of how CRYSTALS-DILITHIUM, Rainbow or extended Merkle signatures work.

After the successful start, the trade fair and congress autumn continues for cryptovision. From October 12 to 14, it-sa in Nuremberg is on the agenda.

cryptovision-Whitepaper zur Post-Quanten-Kryptografie: https://www.cryptovision.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Whitepaper_Post_Quantum_Kryptografie_210421.pdf

 

GreenShield e-mail security software convinces BWI for the German Armed Forces

The IT system house of the German Armed Forces, BWI, has concluded a contract with cv cryptovision GmbH for the use of the GreenShield e-mail security software. Based on a corporate license, more than 160,000 communication subscribers will be successively equipped with the security software for e-mail encryption and digital signature. Cryptovision has been supplying the Bundeswehr with email security software for the electronic processing of classified information up to the classification level “VS-Nur den Dienstgebrauch” (VS-NfD) since 2004.

GreenShield protects e-mails and files on the basis of end-to-end encryption and enables the recipient to verify the integrity of the content and the sender by means of digital signatures. A decisive unique selling point is the interoperability of the cryptovision solution: GreenShield is the only email encryption solution for IBM / HCL Notes on the German market that has been approved by the German Federal Office for Information Security (BSI). The solution’s multi-client capability is also unique: it supports both Outlook and Notes on the same device. Thus, GreenShield enables a smooth migration from Notes to Outlook.

The encryption of files and e-mails is done with just a few clicks and intuitively for the user in the familiar environment of his e-mail program. The GreenShield plug-in integrates seamlessly into the email program as an additional layer of security and offers both users and administrators many additional convenience features.