Software House, part of the Security Products business unit of Tyco, the world?s largest pure-play fire protection and security company, announces the certification of its iSTAR Edge and iSTAR Ultra door controllers under the government?s Federal Information Processing Standards Publications (FIPS) 140-2 program, the most stringent standard for cryptographic products.

With the certification of iSTAR Edge and iSTAR Ultra, Software House becomes the first company to offer a full lineup of FIPS 140-2 approved controllers covering a wide range of access control scenarios.

FIPS 140-2 is an information technology security validation program that certifies products and systems for use in government-run and other highly regulated industries, such as finance and healthcare, where sensitive information is collected, stored, and shared.

The FIPS 140-2 requirements are among the government?s most stringent requirements for product design, documentation, and secure operations.

?The certification of these physical access controllers addresses two of our government and enterprise customers? most critical needs: compliance and choice,? said Rick Focke, Senior Product Manager, Tyco Security Products. ?Receiving FIPS 140-2 validation ensures the products? conformity for use with sensitive information, while offering multiple products with this key certification makes Software House?s iSTAR line the most versatile choice on the market today.?

iSTAR Edge is an IP-based edge device serving smaller one- to four-door PoE network applications, while the powerful and scalable iSTAR Ultra, which is built on the Linux platform, supports up to 32 readers. Software House also offers iSTAR eX, an Ethernet-ready four- to eight-door controller which has already been FIPS 140-2 validated.