Open bolsters interactive TV security
Interactive UK TV company Open Interactive announced a deal with Irish security specialists Baltimore Technologies Tuesday to enhance the security of interactive television.
Baltimore will supply Open Interactive with security technology designed to protect credit card transactions and Internet banking as well as valuable customer data online. Links between Open customers and its content providers will be protected using the SSL/TLS (Secure Socket Layer/Transport Layer Security) encryption protocol, which provides authentication as well as an encryption protected connection.
Content providers for Open include Abbey National Bank, electrical retailer Dixons (quote: DXNS) and Manchester United football club. Open hopes that by providing established security technology with its service as standard it will inspire greater customer confidence in online shopping and banking. A string of recent security breaches have shaken trust in online stores and banks in the UK.
"Baltimore Technologies was the obvious choice of e-security technology for the service because of their leadership on the global industry stage allied with their depth of resources and success here in the UK," said Alan Helmore-Simpson, Open development team manager. "The interoperability of its products with a wide variety of applications and PKI systems allows us to match the diverse requirements of our target market."
Open Interactive was created by British Interactive Broadcasting and is backed by broadcasting giant BSkyB (quote: BSY) and UK telecommunications firm BT (quote: BT).
Take me to the Hackers News Special
To have your say online click on the TalkBack button and go to the ZDNet News forum.
What do you think? Tell the Mailroom. And read what others have said.