Card, mobile credential, payment and security
Three leaders from HID Global's higher ed team explore key issues related to credentials and access control on campus
A recent video interview with HID Global’s higher ed team delves into a wide range of topics from distributed card issuance to security migration. The in-depth interview, part of the HID Connects series, is titled Security in Higher Education… Pass or Fail? It provides a unique opportunity to learn what three industry veterans think about pain points, security threats, and best practices related to campus credentials and security.
The panelists include:
Some campuses could have 5000 readers – in some cases 14,000 readers – several hundred locks, hundreds of point-of-sale terminals that still use mag stripe technology
Q: What are some of the key pain points you see in higher ed?
St. Pierre: The budgets and the silos are the two major pain points. The card office is looking at identity and how it is used on campus, residential is looking at student life in housing and security is different because they are protecting virtually their homes, then you have facilities and law enforcement which is the third pillar and they’re focused on security of the facilities and the buildings. They want an open campus, but they want the ability to lock down. The three different pillars typically have a different view of what they want to do on campus but there is a trend of them coming together and basing their decisions long term. Because at the end of the day all three want to deliver the best student experience.
Q: How has the security threat landscape evolved in higher education?
St. Pierre: Magstipe still accounts for a little over 50% use on campus. Then Proximity came along then MIFARE and iClass. Some campuses could have 5000 readers – in some cases 14,000 readers – several hundred locks, hundreds of point-of-sale terminals … that still use mag stripe technology, so it very difficult for a university to migrate to a smart card technology with housing some sort of legacy (capability) in the reader or the card.
Nyblom: You look at the way the world has changed through digital transformation, yet many organizations are still using mag stripe or prox credentials. Are you still using Window 95, cassette tapes, a discman? The technologies that are still being used to secure some buildings were made 20 or 30 years ago. When you look at it, it is one of the only industries that has not caught up with everything else. Now with mobile, organizations must address the stuff that has been in there for so long.
Q: What is the future of cards and mobile credentials look like ten years in the future?
O’Driscoll: If I look strictly by the numbers of research that is out there, it is showing that card adoption will continue to increase until roughly 2045, and then it will start to take a dip. There is no question that we will continue to see the rate of mobile adoption increase, I don’t think it is going to be fundamentally too much different in ten years. I still see a ton of cards being used in 2033, but certainly there will be a significant increase on the mobile side.
To watch the full interview, click the image at the top of the page.
