Nokia, IBM Secure Mobile Applications

December 31, 2002 -- Communications provider IBM (IBM.com) and networking equipment maker Nokia (Nokia.com) announced recently that IBM work together to secure enterprise business applications for mobile handsets.

IBM Global Services will act as a system integrator for Nokia's Mobile VPN solution for Symbian OS-based mobile handsets.

The Nokia Mobile VPN solution consists of Nokia Security Service Manager (NSSM) and Nokia Mobile VPN Client for secure over-the-air provisioning of Mobile VPN client software for handsets.

Using its expertise in mobility and wired Internet security, Nokia offers mobile security solutions for extending secure network infrastructure to mobile terminals. The client is a standards-based IPSec VPN client supporting both legacy and PKI authentication.

"A key component of setting up and maintaining a mobile workforce is securing information transactions from employees' mobile terminals to their corporate networks," says Dan MacDonald, vice president of product management & marketing, Nokia Internet Communications. "This means that enterprises can be more productive and competitive while their employees can work smarter and more efficiently. Nokia is pleased to offer its new mobile security solutions which are enabling business-critical applications for the mobile enterprise world."

The collaboration, say the companies, will accelerate the business use of mobile handsets, increasing productivity in mobile work environments. Applications taking advantage of the mobile infrastructure include: personal productivity, calendar, messaging and intranet access; customer service, field service and insurance claims processing; sales force automation and order management; productivity, maintenance, parts ordering and shipment tracking.