When Cost of Smartcards is Too High

Very few companies will want to bear the high cost of re-badging their entire workforce. And, why should they? Integrating physical and data security is the desired goal. Smartcards represent a technology approach to achieving that goal. Integration can also be achieved through directory services (e.g. Active directory, LDAP) without having to re-badge. Here is how I advise my clients when they are confronted with budget constraints: i) Identify the assets that represent the greatest risk (e.g. top security government work); ii) Provide smartcards to the people who need to access those assets; iii) Protect all other assets using directory services. This is a practical approach to achieve convergence between physical and data security.