Imprivata, an IT security company specializing in the healthcare industry, has announced a new partnership with IT security firm Symantec. The alliance will see Symantec’s Norton Secure Logon and its Validation and ID Protection Services (VIP) integrated with the Imprivata Confirm ID platform to provide a biometric, FICAM-certified Credential Service Provider (CSP) solution for electronic prescriptions of controlled substances (EPCS).
The idea is to simplify the securitization process for medical service providers moving into EPCS and working to comply with DEA standards. Speaking in a press release, Imprivata’s chief technology officer, David Ting, noted that the two companies’ “integrated solution gives administrators a single workflow for enabling the use of Symantec one-time password (OTP) tokens and/or Imprivata’s fingerprint biometric identification for EPCS,” giving medical administrators “greater flexibility in matching the best two-factor authentication option to fit their prescribers’ clinical workflow requirements.” The DEA does, in fact, require two-factor authentication from a GSA-approved CSP, and since Symantec is one of those, it’s an important alliance for Imprivata.
Imprivata only just announced the launch of its Confirm ID platform at the start of this month, and while electronic prescriptions represent a nascent market, the company seems to be building momentum quickly. There is a kind of digital revolution underway in the healthcare field, with biometric and mobile technology in particular driving it. Electronic prescriptions would seem to provide a natural extension of this new line of exploration, and may prove particularly useful in remote care applications.
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February 17, 2015 – by Alex Perala
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