Gemalto Security Expert Named to Department of Homeland Security Committee

Gemalto Security Expert Named to Department of Homeland Security Committee

ARLINGTON, VA, March 21, 2007–Neville Pattinson, vice president of government affairs and standards, Gemalto North America, has been named to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Data Privacy and Integrity Advisory Committee for a three-year term. The full committee including all newly elected members has its first meeting this year on March 21.

The DHS Data Privacy and Integrity Advisory Committee advises the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, Michael Chertoff, and the DHS Chief Privacy Officer, Hugo Teufel, on programmatic, policy, operational, administrative and technological issues that affect individual privacy, data integrity and data interoperability, and other privacy-related issues. Committee members come from a variety of companies, the academic community and non-profit sector. Members’ wide breadth of knowledge spans technology topics such as data protection, societal considerations such as privacy sensitivity, and national security. The committee will four times a year and has a number of subcommittees that focus on specific work items.

“Privacy and integrity of personal identity information and the protection of people’s identities are of critical importance in all matters undertaken by various DHS programs,” said Pattinson. “It is an honor to be selected to serve as part of such an important committee and I look forward to tackling these and other challenges.”

Pattinson is a leading expert on digital security technology based on the smart card platform. The microprocessor chip keeps people’s identity and biometrics secure and private. He has been heavily involved in planning and implementing a number of federal government security initiatives in the United States including the Department of Defense Common Access Card (CAC); the State Department’s electronic passport; the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI) PASS cards; the Department of Transportation’s Transportation Worker Identity Credential (TWIC), and the Transportation Security Administration’s Registered Traveler programs. Pattinson provided industry leadership to the government/industry activities that lead up to the publication of Federal Information Processing Standard 201 (FIPS 201) in response to Homeland Security Presidential Directive 12 (HSPD-12).

Pattinson is an ISC2 Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP). He is also a Certified Information Privacy Professional (CIPP) and is member of the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP). In addition to this DHS appointment, Pattinson is an active board member of both the International Biometric Industry Association (IBIA) and the Smart Card Alliance. Pattinson is also a founding member of the Secure ID Coalition.

About Gemalto

Gemalto (Euronext NL 0000400653 GTO) is a leader in digital security with 2006 annual revenues of €1.7 billion, operations in about 100 countries and more than 10,000 employees including 1,500 R&D engineers. In a world where the digital revolution is increasingly transforming our lives, Gemalto’s solutions are designed to make personal digital interactions more convenient, secure and enjoyable.

Gemalto provides end-to-end digital security solutions, from the development of software applications through design and production of secure personal devices such as smart cards, SIMs, e-passports, and tokens to the management of deployment services for its customers. More than a billion people worldwide use the company’s products and services for telecommunications, financial services, e-government, identity management, multimedia content, digital rights management, IT security, mass transit and many other applications.

As the use of Gemalto’s software and secure devices increases with the number of people interacting in the digital and wireless world, the company is poised to thrive over the coming years. Gemalto was formed in June 2006 by the combination of Axalto and Gemplus. For more information please visit http://www.gemalto.com.

Note to editors about HSPD-12 and FIPS 201: HSPD-12 mandates that all U.S. federal agencies begin to issue their employees and subcontractors Personal Identity Verification (PIV) cards by October 27, 2006. Standards to comply with the mandate have been defined by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in its publication FIPS 201, Personal Identity Verification (PIV) of Federal Employees and Contractors.

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Deb Montner
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