And that's why analysts expect smart-card identification to be a killer app. As they look forward to this sort of growth, it's no surprise that companies are leaping into the market. The first product out the door is the ImagineCard, a smart identification card. It's based on computer networking provided by Hewlett-Packard Co., database software from Informix Corp., and card hardware from Gemplus Group. Already, British Telecom is using the system as part of its effort to cut down on the use of paper forms.
Many forms are electronic and signatures are digital.
The employee's card can be used to sign and encrypt a document with a code that identifies the document as originating with the signer. Anyone can read the document, but if anything is changed, the digital signature is destroyed, signaling that the document has been tampered with. The ImagineCard system reaches beyond internal administration. The ImagineCard Web solution uses the same digital signature technology to sign orders for goods to be sold over the Web. The customer is not the only one to benefit from the added security.