Now available for nShield the newest generation of Thales Hardware Security Modules designed for enhanced performance 
Thales’s payShield Cardholder Authentication for nShield authenticates credit card users and protects encryption key transfers, safeguarding credit card information and assisting with regulatory compliance such as PCI. payShield Cardholder Authentication for nShield is already widely deployed in web-based applications for MasterCard’s Chip Authentication Program (CAP) and Visa’s Dynamic Passcode Authentication (DPA) for online banking and 3D-Secure applications such as Verified by Visa* and MasterCard SecureCode* for online payments.
*Editor's Note: Both of which (Verified by Visa and SecureCode) were recently exposed by Cambridge researchers as no only being insecure, but described as a "textbook example" of what NOT to do when it comes to authenticating the online user. See: Verified by Visa: "Textbook Example of How NOT to Design an Authentication Protocol
Expanding the supported platforms for Thales’s payShield Cardholder Authentication for nShield supports customers that are upgrading their mission-critical environments using Thales nShield Connect, the industry’s only HSM with dual, hot-swappable power supplies for enhanced business continuity. This ensures that card authentication systems have maximum uptime, ensuring customer satisfaction and avoiding failed financial transactions.
Thales’s payShield Cardholder Authentication for nShield is easy to integrate with web service technologies such as Java and features a C library for integration with third party products. The solution is often deployed with off-the-shelf cardholder authentication solutions from ActivIdentity, Arcot, Gemalto, and RSA.
“Thales is a global leader in payments security with more than 70 percent of global payment card transactions protected by Thales security solutions,” says Franck Greverie, Vice President, Managing Director for the information systems security activities of Thales. “payShield Cardholder Authentication already plays a critical part in many of the worlds Card Associations to provide the most advanced credit card authentication systems. This product update demonstrates our continued dedication to the payments industry and our commitment to developing the nCipher product line. payShield Cardholder Authentication for nShield effectively enables our customers to protect against fraud in online banking and card-not-present (CNP) transactions.”
For additional commentary on trends in payment security, please visit www.PaymentsSecurity.com.
Notes to editor
Thales is one of the world leaders in the provision of Information and Communication Systems Security solutions for government, defence, critical infrastructure operators, enterprises and the finance industry. Thales’s unique position in the market is due to its end-to-end security offering spanning the entire value chain in the security domain. The comprehensive offering includes architecture design, security and encryption product development, evaluation and certification preparation and through-life management services.
Thales has forty years of unrivalled track record in protecting information from Sensitive But Unclassified up to Top Secret and a comprehensive portfolio of security products and services, which includes network security products, application security products and secured telephony products.
About Thales
Thales is a global technology leader for the Aerospace and Space, Defence, Security and Transportation markets. In 2008, the company generated revenues of 12.7 billion euros with 68,000 employees in 50 countries. With its 25,000 engineers and researchers, Thales has a unique capability to design, develop and deploy equipment, systems and services that meet the most complex security requirements. Thales has an exceptional international footprint, with operations around the world working with customers as local partners. www.thalesgroup.com
