23 April 2008

Infosecurity 2008: car and plant makers turn to encryption to safeguard intellectual property

Warwick Ashford, Computer Weekly

Automotive and machinery manufacturers are turning to encryption technologies to protect intellectual property, it has emerged at Infosecurity 2008, which is taking place in London this week.

The trend is the result of an increase in the use of embedded software and integrated circuits in industrial machinery and vehicles.

As GPS systems become more common as a standard part of most vehicles, manufacturers are seeking to differentiate themselves in the applications these systems can run.

Gary Clark, EMEA vice-president of encryption technology supplier Safenet, said manufacturers were increasingly concerned about securing the intellectual property contained in their products.

"The real functionality now resides in the software and computer systems that drive these machines and therefore that is where the value lies," said Clark.

He said the manufacturing industry was fast increasing its demand for intellectual property protection systems, particularly in Europe, as firms seek to prevent competitors from pirating intelligence embedded in their products.

Manufacturers are looking to security suppliers to help them build in encryption and other protection for their intellectual property from the very beginning.

This article first appeared on the web-site of Computer Weekly, at http://www.computerweekly.com/Articles/2008/04/23/230400/infosecurity-2008-car-and-plant-makers-turn-to-encryption-to-safeguard-intellectual.htm © Reed Business Information 2008.

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