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International access manufacturer sets up shop in SA

The year 2024 started with a new wind blowing through the access control industry, with STid Security formally entering the South African market. STid has set up its office and product showcase within the Boomgate Experience Centre in Roodepoort, Johannesburg.

The launch team, comprising John Lakin and Jethro Lakin, bring extensive STid knowledge and consistency of messaging to an industry hungry for knowledge and keen to challenge the status quo.

STid is a family-owned business, founded in 1996, and it differentiates itself from the competition by placing the customer at the centre of every decision. Its staff are employed with this philosophy at heart, and this ensures the ‘family’ unit is complete.

Customers and partners first

Messages from company CEOs always seem a little contrived and are written with shareholders and the media in mind. The following paragraph is an excerpt from the CEO of STid, Vincent Dupart. John Lakin feels this best summarises what STid stands for, “In addition to the functionalities of our products, our corporate culture is what makes STid a recognised market leader. Our company’s growth is based on our commitment to putting our partners and clients at the heart of our strategy.”

“Our partners particularly appreciate our customised support and desire to develop open and non-propriety solutions. Our business is built on the trust we have earned from our partners as we provide them with the right solutions, letting them stay in charge of their security, processes and industrial flows. It is how we fulfil our mission while promoting reliability and user-friendliness in the digital world. We are happy and proud to share it with you every day.”

Jethro is based in the experience centre, where the facility provides the opportunity to see the entire portfolio of products in a tradeshow-type environment and then try the readers in the real world on booms, turnstiles, speed lanes and doors. This flexible approach enables integrators, end users and consultants to gain something from their time within the facility.

John is based in the Cape and claims to be very busy.

Product portfolio

STid’s entire portfolio offering is completely open protocol and is based on DESFire EV3 technology, providing 128-bit AES encryption, which is standard and has an entirely scalable security offering. The openness extends to all the tools with open APIs and SDKs for those clients looking for more.

Awards typically follow innovation, and the Architect range of readers, and its brother, the Spectre Nano, have won more than 20 international awards for their design and performance excellence. (See sidebars for more information.) STid’s innovation extends to communication protocols with Wiegand, OSDP and SSCP all being available across the entire range.

Security built-in

STid is the first RFID manufacturer to have received First Level Security Certification (CSPN) and offer access solutions compliant with European personal data protection (GDPR) regulations. All public encryption algorithms (3DES, AES, RSA, SHA, and more), which are recommended by official data security agencies (such as the French national agency ANSSI), can be used.

Cards are not dead

The demise of PVC in the access control industry is over-reported, and its presence will loom over us for most of our working lives. What is true is that the alternatives are very much alive and kicking and probably offer real, real-world options for the very first time. Biometrics have led this charge for many years, and now they have a partner in crime in the shape of virtual credentials which live within smartphones.

Virtual credentials, using Bluetooth and NFC, have flexibility and compatibility and can bridge the pricing gap between traditional RFID options and complete biometric offerings. Configurable Bluetooth provides much longer read ranges, while maintaining complete security integrity.

Stid’s policy of transparency in performance, communication security, and pricing enables the customer to calculate a true cost of ownership with no licensing fees, hidden charges, or pay-to-use features. One payment and the whole solution is yours for life.

For more information, contact STid, Jethro Lakin at [email protected], John Lakin at [email protected], www.stid-security.com

STid product range in brief

STid’s Architect range

With its range of Architect readers, STid has created a blend of high security and upgradability. This is the first modular range of secure RFID, NFC (HCE) and Bluetooth readers, offering flexibility and simplicity.

Architect readers are based on an intelligent RFID core (Bluetooth optional) to which various interchangeable modules are connected: card reader, keypad, touch screen, biometric fingerprint sensor, 1D and 2D code reader (QR Code) and 125 kHz reader to facilitate your technological migrations. This straightforward and cost-saving modular approach lets you autonomously manage the security of your access points. The concept offers greater availability and services, while optimising your inventory by reducing the number of parts needed by 40%.

STid’s Spectre range

Spectre Nano facilitates access control for vehicles and drivers with different profiles (visitors, employees, tenants, etc.) thanks to multiple identification technologies.

Passive UHF technology: The reader provides UHF identification up to 6 m. The passive credentials (without battery) require no maintenance and have an unlimited life span.

Bluetooth smartphones: The reader offers many identification modes – long distance, hands-free or proximity - to make your access control both secure and instinctive. Spectre Nano is fully integrated into the STid Mobile ID ecosystem, allowing users to use their virtual card for parking and pedestrian access.

Mixed identification: Spectre Nano reads heterogeneous identifiers:

• The virtual card for smooth management of visitor and employee access.

• The UHF windshield tag for tracking vehicle fleets.

• Both simultaneously for vehicle and driver identification.

The reader benefits from the highest levels of security, guaranteeing the authenticity and confidentiality of data, using encryption methods recognised and recommended by independent organisations (ANSSI, FIPS, etc.):

• Encrypted/signed credentials to ensure anti-cloning and anti-replay protection.

• EAL5+ certified key storage.

• Self-protection function to erase security keys.

• Secure end-to-end bidirectional communication using SSCP and Open Supervised

• Device Protocol (OSDP) protocols.

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