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Wincor Nixdorf working with German Federal Ministry on ATM security research project

November 15, 2011

According to Finextra.com, biometric technology provider Morpho is working with Wincor Nixdorf, the University of Paderborn and data security company Achelos in the "System Integrity in Self-service Machines" research project led by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research.

The project's goal is to develop security solutions that protect cash dispensers and payment terminals using new cryptographic methods.

According to the article, part of the project focuses on using cryptographic methods to be implemented in smart cards. Security modules are integrated into ATMs to enable mutual authentication. This method would allow personal or system data, such as a component's serial number, to be used for encryption.

The advantage of using identity-based cryptography instead of traditional systems is the elimination of additional administrative costs caused by a public key infrastructure, a system that can issue, distribute and check digital certificates, since existing infrastructure can be used.

For more information on this topic, visit our security research center.