Re: Getting a personal smart card

["Johann MacDonagh" <johann () macdonaghs com>]

I would keep an encrypted archive copy of my certs and signed keys
(PGP) in a safe location, so if the key is damaged, I can simply get a
new one and import the old certs.

I'm also looking at the Aladdin eToken. Correct me if I'm wrong, but
any system that has support for PKCS #11 should be able to read from
it, right?

Johann

On 7/7/08, Geoffrey J Gowey <gjgowey () gmail com> wrote:
> Your problem with a device such as this is that if the device is lost/damaged/destroyed then you're out of business.  
> They're good for companies with a centralized setup since they can be replaced and the credentials changed, but for 
> personal use it gets much more complicated.
>
> Sent from my BlackBerry wireless handheld.
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Johann MacDonagh <johann () macdonaghs com>
>
> Date: Mon, 7 Jul 2008 17:50:28
> To: <security-basics () securityfocus com>
> Subject: Getting a personal smart card
>
>
> Hey all,
>
> If anyone was following my previous message, I was discussing unique password complexity. I also mentioned that I 
> would love to have a personal smart card for personal authentication.
>
> I may have found one:
> http://athena-scs.com/product.asp?pid=33
>
> The USB connection means that I don't have to buy a separate reader for computer systems. Sweet!
>
> I just wonder what I can use this for. From what I understand, I can use it to log into Windows, OS X, and Linux 
> systems by simply plugging in the USB key and entering in my PIN, right? Also, I guess support is built into OS X, 
> but requires software installation for Linux and Windows (although depending on the distro, it may already be 
> available on the Linux system).
>
> So, if I have a x.509 cert for e-mail signing and a PGP key, I assume I can upload both of those onto there and 
> remove them from my computer system. Then, whenever an application (a supported application) requires one or the 
> other, it can query my smart card. All encryption is done on the chip, so the computer system never even sees the 
> private key.
>
> Has anyone used these kinds of systems? Purely a geek toy or did they make your life easier? Is Athena known for 
> interoperability between systems?
>
> Thanks,
> Johann