44 INTERVIEW Strong security with a single tap Troy Johnston of HID Global discusses how the company is working with its technology partners to meet the rising demand for mobile access control solutions Mobile credentials integrated into smartphones are rapidly becoming a cornerstone of modern identity and access control strategies, according to The Industry Report: 2025 State of Security and Identity report from HID Global. In fact, 61 per cent of the security leaders surveyed for the report cite mobile identity proliferation as a top trend and nearly two-thirds say they are either deploying or planning to implement such solutions due to benefits such as enhanced convenience, security and operational efficiency. Troy Johnston, director of strategic alliances for the Americas at HID Global, explains how the concept of access control is changing and how the company works with various technology partners to help people around the world access offices, hospitals and more. How have organisations’ access control priorities changed and what type of solutions are they looking to implement today? Historically, organisations focused on deploying physical access control solutions – such as master key systems, door locks, keypad readers and physical credentials to restrict access to buildings or specific areas within their facilities. In 2014, HID launched mobile access and it rapidly gained traction. Companies quickly migrated from physical to digital, allowing employees and tenants to access the building with their mobile phones. These mobile access solutions are still a priority for organisations but they’re looking to evolve them so employees can do more than just open doors; they want staff to be able to access devices and systems inside the building too. For instance, customers now want to use their phone to call an elevator, open a locker, or securely store their bicycle. In addition, some of our customers are exploring how they can use logical access control solutions to secure their IT operating systems, business applications and confidential data platforms. These solutions prevent breaches by ensuring only authorised employees can interact with sensitive information. Can you explain how HID works with technology partners to deliver reliable mobile access control solutions for organisations in various industries? HID has essentially taken the security credentials that were previously stored in physical keycards and created both a software development kit (SDK) and a HID Mobile Access app to embed them into mobile phones and digital wallets. We provide the SDK, the APIs and the mobile security credentials, then our partners integrate them with their own complementary solutions, which include everything from tenant experience applications to visitor management, workspace booking systems and BY REBECCA GIBSON “ Together with our partners, we build end-toend mobile access control solutions for customers”
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NzQ1NTk=