Thursby Software Systems announced today that it
is extending the ADmitMac® product line with the
introduction of ADmitMac for PIV.
ADmitMac for PIV (ADPIV) securely integrates U.S.
Government Personal Identity Verification (PIV)
cards with Apple Macintosh computers. The
software provides a single sign-on environment,
verifying a PIV card against a centralized
network authority.
ADmitMac for PIV includes Thursby’s SMB/CIFS
implementation for bidirectional file and
printing sharing with Microsoft networks. This
includes support for Microsoft’s Distributed File
System (DFS), common to all Thursby products. For
customers using Microsoft’s Entourage 2004,
ADmitMac for PIV adds the ability for users to
access email using their PIV card instead of
passwords (a capability native to Entourage
2008).
When a PIV card is inserted into a Macintosh,
ADmitMac for PIV changes the normal login screen
and challenges the user to enter their PIV card
PIN authorization. Upon verification of the
user’s PIN, ADPIV then obtains the proper network
credentials from the Kerberos Key Distribution
Center. ADmitMac for PIV includes its own PKINIT
(Public Key Cryptography for Initial
Authentication in Kerberos) that enables this
secure integration.
Security goes far beyond a simple verification of
the PIN against the PIV card. With ADmitMac for
PIV, the card itself is challenged to ensure that
neither the card nor the privileges granted the
user have been revoked.
ADmitMac for PIV obtains authorized Kerberos
certificates, makes these cer?tificates available
to “Kerberized” applications, locks the computer
upon removal of a PIV card, and protects the
computer from unauthorized wake from sleep modes.
The enterprise version (volume licenses) includes
the ADmitMac Deployment Utility to allow
simplified deployment to multiple Macintosh
systems. Also included is AD Commander that
allows an administrator to manage Active
Directory settings from a Macintosh.
Thursby Software is offering special introductory
pricing through August 31, 2009 on ADmitMac for
PIV. Detailed information including a full list
of features, pricing, and evaluation licenses are
available on Thursby’s web site, www.thursby.com.
ADmitMac for PIV continues Thursby Software’s
history of providing both the first and most
complete Macintosh to Microsoft networking
solutions.