UPEK® Announces Launch of The Eikon Digital Privacy Manager

Award-winning USB fingerprint reader makes digital security easier for home and business PC users

EMERYVILLE, CA – May 10, 2007 – UPEK®, Inc., the world’s leading brand of fingerprint authentication security solutions, today announced the launch of the Eikon™ Digital Privacy Manager.  By combining the award-winning Eikon USB peripheral fingerprint reader with the same Protector Suite QL software currently shipping on millions of notebook PCs today, any user with an existing PC can now enjoy the benefits of simple convenience and strong security provided by UPEK’s unique biometric authentication technology, all with the simple swipe of their finger.  The product is available for purchase at www.upek.com/eikon.

This new offering is targeted directly at solving one of today’s most frustrating PC user experiences – managing the growing complexity and quantity of passwords. Anyone who accesses information over the internet is experiencing the increasing number and complexity of passwords required to perform daily online activities such as paying bills, accessing email, or planning travel. This complexity naturally leads to a desire to create simple or common passwords that can be easily remembered. Unfortunately, as the need for online security increases, the rules for creating and changing passwords are becoming more complex which in turn makes them more difficult to remember. This requires the user to write them all down and keep them easily accessible but also makes them more vulnerable to loss, theft, or malicious attack.

In addition to easier access to their growing number of password-protected web accounts, users also enjoy the following benefits by simply swiping their finger:

• Respond to Windows® Vista™ User Account Control (UAC) requests to enter an administrator password for tasks such as software installations or configuration changes;
• Logon to Windows, lock and unlock the PC, and switch between Windows user accounts;
• Protect sensitive files by encrypting them;
• Launch favorite applications by assigning specific fingers for each one.

The Eikon Digital Privacy Manager addresses the growing consumer market need for a simpler and more secure way to protect important personal information from threats such as phishing, password dictionary attacks and malicious software.  Rather than using simple or redundant passwords on multiple sites, users can now choose complex passwords and let the Eikon Digital Privacy Manager remember them automatically!

“People want to enjoy and be productive with their computers, and not have to spend time protecting and securing them and the applications they use,” stated Brian DeGonia, UPEK product marketing manager. “By making security measures and personalization experiences which require passwords and encryption as easy as swiping a finger, we’re letting people focus on what’s important to them.”

The Eikon Digital Privacy Manager leverages the same hardware and software from UPEK integrated into millions of laptops from the world’s leading PC brands.  Now PC users can enjoy the same security and convenience benefits on their existing computers by simply plugging the fingerprint reader into to an available USB port on their desktop or notebook PCs and installing the Protector Suite QL software.

The fingerprint reader does not store fingerprint images, only mathematical data based on the uniqueness of a fingerprint referred to as a “template,” which is stored inside the reader hardware and cannot be used to reproduce the fingerprint image.  In addition, the fact that people leave their fingerprints on everyday objects such as cell phones, drinking glasses, and doorknobs is not a concern since a fingerprint image cannot be “inserted” into the Eikon fingerprint reader in an attempt to impersonate the legitimate user.

Winner of the prestigious Consumer Electronics Association (CES) Best of Innovations Award, the Eikon fingerprint reader measures just 1¼ inches wide and less than 3¼ inches long and features a sleek design, a non-skid surface, and a blue LED that blinks to indicate when the user should swipe their finger.  The bundled Protector Suite QL software is compatible with Windows Vista, XP Home and Professional, 2003 and 2000 operating systems.

The Eikon Digital Privacy Manager has a manufacturer’s suggested retail price of $49.99 and is available for a limited time offer of $39.99 by purchasing through www.upek.com/eikon.

About UPEK

UPEK, Inc., a global leader in biometric fingerprint security solutions, offers integrated end-to-end solutions including comprehensive design & integration services to the world’s leading consumer and industrial products companies. UPEK solutions enable the strongest fingerprint authentication security available, packaged for high user convenience and rapid integration into existing products and network architectures.  The company has been pioneering biometric fingerprint technology since 1996 and shipping product in volume since 1999.  UPEK is headquartered in Emeryville, California, with offices in Prague, Singapore, Taipei and Tokyo. For more information, please visit www.upek.com .

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UPEK, the UPEK logo and Protector Suite are registered trademarks or trademarks of UPEK, Inc. in the United States and other countries.  All other trademarks or registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners.