Farpointe Reminds Integrators to Contact Electric Utility Customers Quickly
New NERC CIP-006 Requirements for Two-Factor Authentication Must be Completed by March 31, 2016
Sunnyvale, Calif., USA - November 17, 2015 – Farpointe Data, a DORMA Group Company, the access control industry’s trusted global partner for RFID solutions, today announced that both its Pyramid P-640 proximity card reader with keypad and Delta6.4 smart card reader with keypad meet the impending CIP-006 requirements for two-factor authentication as described by the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC), an organization of U.S. electric grid operators. Two-factor authentication is achieved because the card is something you carry and the PIN (Personal Identification Number) is something you know.
“The March 31 deadline for incorporating the two-factor solution is quickly approaching so we encourage our integrator partners to contact their electric utility customers immediately,” emphasizes Scott Lindley, president of Farpointe Data. “Whether the customer prefers a proximity or smart card reader with keypad, we are often able to help our access control system partners by shipping either of these models in no more than three days to their integrators, thereby assisting their electric utility customers meet the deadline and not be subject to a fine.”
The new NERC protection standards under CIP-006 require that the network be segmented to prevent an attack on one network being spread to the next network and that strong two-factor authentication be used to ensure only authorized individuals may have physical and logical access to the critical assets. Strong two-factor authentication must be used for remote access to the networks, access to the physical security perimeter, access to the electronic security perimeter and access to specific critical assets.
Both the P-640 proximity reader and Delta6.4 smart card reader carry lifetime warranties even though, in electric utility applications, many of the readers are slated to be used outdoors in dusty or humid environments. The card/keypad combinations are designed to meet IP67 certification and feature tamper-proof and weather-resistant epoxy potting to avoid problems with dust, mist or water. They work in temperature extremes from -40°F to +149°F (-40°C to +65°). With distinctive blue backlit keys, the two-factor validation solutions are very easy to read in dark environments.
Electric utility attendees to the ISC East Show at the Javits Center North in New York City November, 18-19, are encouraged to stop in Farpointe Data’s booth #533 to learn more on how to meet two-factor validation.
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Contacts:
Scott Lindley, Farpointe Data
+1-408-731-8700
Tom Brigham, Brigham Scully
+1-207-941-1100