New Material Fingerprinting System Wins Global Security Challenge

6 November 2006 - A new solution for reducing counterfeiting and authenticating and tracking goods and documents has won the Global Security Challenge. In the final of the international competition to find the most promising security start-up in the world, the $10,000 prize went to a British company formed only three years ago.

Ingenia Technology’s unique Laser Surface Authentication or LSATM technology reads the surface of paper, plastics and metals using a low cost laser, analysing its structure with a reliability level of at least one million trillion. The reflected laser from the surface is used to capture microscope signatures of the surface.

(Jeff David, Deputy Director of TSWG, US Department of Defense (left) presented the Global Security Challenge 2006 Award to Mark McGlade, Business Development Director at winners Ingenia Technology and Professor Russell Cowburn (right), Ingenia's Chief Technology Officer and the inventor of the Laser Surface Authentication (LSATM) technology)

This information, a material’s unique “fingerprint”, provides a new way of authenticating and tracking goods and documents from credit cards, ID cards and passports to medicines, automotive and aerospace components.

Speaking before the announcement, Lord Drayson, Minister for Defence Procurement commented: “Promoting excellence and innovation is a process that thrives on competition. The high standard of exciting entries in today’s Global Security Challenge is proof that competition is often a vital catalyst in driving that process forward.”

The four other finalists have developed technologies that can identify people by the way they walk, protect databases, detect bioterrorism agents and carry out accurate surveillance over 5,000 feet in the dark.

Stephen Phipson, Managing Director of Smiths Detection, a principle sponsor of the GSC, commented: “The importance of these new technologies cannot be over emphasised. It is the type of ingenuity demonstrated by all the finalists that has driven the growth of Smiths Detection. I congratulate Ingenia on winning the Challenge.”

The judges when announcing the result said: “Our decision to select Ingenia Technology was unanimous. Ingenia has developed a potentially disruptive technology with global opportunities.”

In addition to a cash prize of $10,000, Ingenia Technology will receive mentorship from Siemens Venture Capital to help the company bring its product further on to the market. It is also participating in the Smiths Detection Security and Resilience Forum held in London.

Simon Schneider, co-director of the Global Security Challenge and former security consultant with IBM, said: “We have been delighted by the response that we have had to the Challenge. All of the entries were of a high quality and we hope that everyone has gained from participating. The judges had a difficult task deciding on the winner and I thank them for their perseverance and commitment.”

The judges for the Global Security Challenge were Dr. Uwe Albrecht - Director, Siemens Venture Capital; Stephen Bonner - Global Director of Information Risk Management, Barclays; Jeff David, Deputy Director of TSWG, U.S. Department of Defense; Les Gregory, Strategy Director, BAE Systems Integrated System Technologies; and Dr. Alastair MacWillson - Global Managing Partner of Global Security Practice, Accenture