Silex Technology has launched a WiFi access control device based on biometrics.

Bio-NetGuard is a fingerbased access control system for WiFi local area networks (LANs).

""Today's workforce is becoming increasingly more dependent on mobility, which increases the need for access to wireless networks to conduct business,"" said Gary Bradt, silex vice president, biometrics division. ""Bio-NetGuard takes the concern out of controlling a WiFi local area network by fully containing it through a biometric authentication device that works with any access point.""

The growth of WiFi has brought many business advantages, mainly in the increasingly mobile workforce. However there still remains the age old problem of identifying and authenticating who is trying to access the network.

Bio-NetGuard uses a Fujitsu MBF200 sensor and is 802.11a/b/g and 802.11i compliant. Bio-NetGuard is a DSP-based, fully-contained network authentication device that works with any WPA-compliant access point. It is a plug-and-play device and requires no more than a few minutes to install and configure. It supports up to 500 users and has a fingerprint match time of 400 milliseconds.

"In the past an organization could protect its equipment but were lacking a way to authenticate which users could and could not connect to its network,"" said Bradt. "Bio-NetGuard allows organizations and companies, no matter their size or industry, to secure their wireless devices and increase security of confidential information and files."

Authentication of users has become an essential part of internal controls whether as part of IT management or for wider regulatory regimes such as Sarbanes-Oxley or HIPPA.

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