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Secure iButtons—Your Smart Card Alternative
Security is a pervasive problem in all things digital. Since information and communication all boil down to transient ones and zeros, their validity and authenticity can come into question. The armor-plated iButton, powered by chips with world-class algorithms, combine to give you the world's most robust tokens in both the physical and digital realms. From an unalterable and unique 64-bit address to an authenticated, secure memory token, iButtons give you the data security and authenticity that is a must in the 21st century.
iButtons are alternatives to Magstripe Cards, Smart Cards, and Proximity or Contactless Cards. Due to their durability and inexpensive readers, iButtons are the lowest cost of all technologies on the market when overall systems cost over time are taken into account.
Secure iButton Applications
| Application
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Host
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Authentication Target
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| Physical Access Control
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Electronic Door Lock
Building Access
Filing Cabinet Lock
Safe
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Portable Token
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| Electronic Cash (eCash)
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Vending Machine
Parking Meter
Toll Booth
Pay Phone
Gaming
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Portable Token
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| Software Authorization
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PC Software
Equipment Firmware
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Portable, Attached, or Embedded Token
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| Device Authentication
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Disposable or Reusable Parts
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Peripheral Device with Embedded Token
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| User Access Control
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PC / Server
Vehicle
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Portable Token and User
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Pick the Level of iButton Security that you need.
Level 1 -
All iButtons come with a factory lasered 64-bit address that is unalterable and unique. This address can be used for a secure key or ID. Also, this address can be used to make an encryption key unique when writing data to a Memory iButton.
Level 2 -
The DS1991L MultiKey iButton has three 48-byte data blocks to support up to 3 different applications or service providers. Each data block is secured by an 8-byte password.
For applications with much larger memory needs, the DS1977 EEPROM iButton has 32k bytes, organized as pages of 64 bytes each with optional password protection. The passwords are 64-bit with separate passwords for read and full-access permissions.
Level 3 -
The SHA (Secure Hash Algorithm) iButtons, DS1961S and DS1963S, are specifically made for eCash transactions, but they can be used for authentication in any application. SHA iButtons have 128 to 512 bytes of memory and can support up to 7 individual service providers. Each has an onboard 512-bit SHA-1 engine that can compute 160-bit MACs (Message Authentication Codes). SHA-1 is non-reversible, collision-resistant, and has a good avalanche effect. The SHA series of hashes are currently the only FIPS-approved method and is also specified in ISO/IEC 10118-3.
Check out the links below for complete security solutions, from our partners.
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