HID Global, has responded to the escalating issue of protecting major brands against counterfeiting and grey market activities by increasing its investments in its IoT-based brand protection services and expanding its community of partners who develop and deliver front-end experiences to global brands and consumers.
HID Trusted Tag Services make this possible by securely authenticating products from the time of production, through every step of the distribution process, and at the point of consumer sale. HID Trusted Tag Services combine HID’s cloud authentication services with its NFC tags that come in many form factors for variety of product shapes and sizes requiring brand authentication. HID’s tags are embedded into each product during the manufacturing process, and are read using NFC-enabled smartphones (both Android and iOS v11 and newer). The cryptographic capabilities of the embedded tags reportedly make them impossible to be cloned or copied, and the extended security features in HID’s cloud authentication service provide privacy-preserving brand authentication and consumer engagement in a closed and trusted environment.
“As a pioneer of brand protection, HID is able to quickly leverage Apple’s NFC read capabilities to drive mass adoption and help the average consumer avoid being duped by counterfeit products,” said Mark Robinton, Director Business Development and Strategic Innovation at HID Global. “Our solution goes beyond adding trust to the global supply chain; it also opens a secure channel for brands to engage directly with consumers as part of their brand loyalty strategy.”
HID Trusted Tag Services enables brand protection and engagement around the world. In the United States, New York City-based partner Blue Bite has launched an authentication suite, which uses HID Trusted Tag Services for major European brands, in partnership with Italy-based Temera. “Brands are adopting product authentication to help protect against the negative effects of counterfeiting,” said Mikhail Damiani, Blue Bite CEO. “We’ve developed a highly secure and scalable authentication solution that uses the power of NFC to empower both brands and customers alike in their fight against this growing issue.”
In Canada, Toronto-based partner Authentic or Not is working with HID to provide a secure brand authentication experience to major brands. Ahmer Beg, Founder and CEO of Authentic or Not, noted: “With our patented technology, we are in the business of adding intelligence to products and unlocking real-world engagement with consumers. HID Trusted Tag Services provide the secure bridge between products and the digital world to make this possible. We see a future where counterfeit goods can be easily rooted out and brands can provide customers with VIP experiences through our platform.”
In the United Kingdom, London-based partner Skute is using HID Trusted Tag Services to unlock real-time, hyper-personalised experiences for a new wave of fan engagement. “Our platform is shifting the paradigm in fan engagement by giving consumers secure, authentic and direct access to their favourite musical artist, athletes, teams and brands, all via a variety of creative form factors so organisations can facilitate exclusive direct marketing experiences. This exclusivity translates to the younger market too – in industries such as gaming, toys and music – where Skute gives parents peace of mind that their children can safely engage with various channels in a ‘ring fenced’ IoT ecosystem,” said Dan Lewis, CEO of Skute.
In Australia, Tasmanian partner AusNFC uses HID Trusted Tag Services with their web application Old Kimpton Distillery and McHenry Distillery. “We believe that HID Trusted Tag Services are changing the game for securely authenticating brands,” offered Larry Hower, CEO of AusNFC. “Being able to stay connected and engage with their consumers as part of building brand loyalty was a deciding factor when Old Kimpton Distillery and McHenry Distillery chose HID for brand protection.”
