Digital signature and USK (USB Security Key) manufactured by Department of Science and Technology of Dong Nai province.

The e-office system is displayed at Vietnam Techmart 2005

 It has been piloted in the Department to manage its administration and achieved initial results, especially the success of digital signature – a software used for creating digital signature – and USK (stands for USB Security Key) – a portable and smart device. This system, which is highly valuated in many science conferences of central agencies, ministries and sectors, is nominated to compete in ADOC Award (an official award of APEC Digital Opportunity Center) and recently win gold medal at Vietnam Techmart 2005 (Technology Fair).

The inspiration to manufacture USK

Mr. Pham Van Sang, director of Department of Science and Technology of Dong Nai province and project leader, unveiled that from the very first step to conduct the research and to pilot the e-office system, the Department only set the three following targets: to construct quality control system basing on the ISO 9001:2000 (standards of International Standard Organization), to apply multi media system to implement I.T application projects and to train and retrain its staffs to get familiar with new working style and e-life. When the e-office system was being piloted in the Department, the circulation of documents in the system had brought about many problems. It is very difficult for everyone to check and confirm the legality of these documents. This inspired the research team to manufacture an intelligent key (USK) which has functions to secure the information safety and to ensure the legality of documents and it should obey the ISO 17799 Standard from ANSI. As a result, the digital signature and USK have been given birth since then and played a significant role in the e-office system and other applications in its the preparation for the international integration once the legal framework on e-government is issued.

The real result.

At recent conference to evaluate this system, all members of science council highly valued and graded it. The system has been successfully applied in many enterprises. The great achievement of this project is to manufacture an intelligent key. This will speed up the computerization of public management in the province. USK is a portal and smart device. It performs network login, e-office login, makes banking transactions and especially signing, encrypting email, documents. It is integrated to have 128 MB of flash memory that can be accessed as a normal removable drive. Commenting on this project, Mr. Dao The Long, Director of Network Security Center, suggested that the Party Committee and People’s Committee of Dong Nai province should promptly pilot e-office system in their offices so as to widely apply in all government agencies in the province in the near future. With Vietnamese language interface, users find it easy to use. It also settles urgent demand for network and data security.

USK is the first computer peripheral device to be successfully made in Vietnam. Come along with USK is applications and add-in that integrated into common office applications as Microsoft Office and Adobe Acrobat Reader. All modules have functions to digitally sign/verify and encrypt/decrypt all types of file before publishing over Internet or to e-office., guaranty that all documents transferred over network could not be intervened as well as modified any piece of private data.

USK applications comply with International Security Standard, they provide symmetric/asymmetric algorism to encrypt/decrypt data, using X509 V.3 certificate to create digital signature and PKI standard to store Public/Private keys pair.

The significant effects of this project are to reduce “paper work” of the Department, and to publicize all Department activities in general and its director board in particular. It simultaneously enhances the knowledge on the importance of network and data security of leaders and paves the way for constructing e-government of Dong Nai province in the coming time.

A public tool.

Sigin ceremony

Only after a few years, the product has become a useful tool of agencies and minister of various levels. Its achievement has been published on the year-book of many conferences such as the third national conference on information and technology; the 9th conference on the coordination to develop information technology held in Hai Phong City; the conference on applying digital signature held by the central committee for Science and Education; conference on transforming digital divide to digital opportunity held by APEC (Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation) in Taipei, Taiwan R.O.C. It wins a gold medal in the Vietnam Techmart 2005 and ranked 4th among other 10 best e-practices in Vietnam in 2005. On October 28th, the government committee for crucial matters signed a cooperation agreement with the Department of Science and Technology of Dong Nai province, the pioneer of government agencies to work on this field. This is the initial step of the two sides in order to conduct research on network and data security to contribute to the construction of e-government and e-commerce in Dong Nai province.

(Source Dong Nai Labor Newspaper)