Sojitz Corporation

CLOSE

Time Verification to be Introduced to Electronic Seal System through Alliance with Amano Corporation

Apr. 23, 2003

TOKYO(April 23, 2003)--Nissho Iwai Corporation will form an alliance with Amano Corporation, the largest firm in Japan in the development and manufacture of time recorders and parking control systems, in an effort to encourage broad use of the Electronic Seal System. The introduction of time verification, which is receiving attention for proof of electronic transactions, electronic document production and non-interpolated electronic documents, to the electronic seal-based individual authentication tool the Electronic Seal System, will enable the system to be more reliable. Nissho Iwai and Amano will promote Electronic Seal System sales activities, not only through a technical alliance but also through the sharing of information and customer routes.

Nissho Iwai formed the Electronic Seal Consortium in collaboration with seal manufacturer Shachihata Inc., WACOM CO., Ltd., SORUN CORPORATION, and Magic Software Japan, K.K., and carries out planning, development and promotion activities for the Electronic Seal System. The Electronic Seal System allows one to place a seal on an electronic document as though one was using a regular seal, with the use of an electronic seal that has a unique built-in ID and a tablet (sealing pad) that is connected to the PC. The integrated authentication server 'jaiser', which uses technology from Oracle Japan, controls the unique IDs and seal impressions of the electronic seal to realize high-security electronic authentication.

The 'e-Timing Network Time Clock & Verification Service' offered by Amano distributes time, which is reliable and traceable to UTC (Coordinated Universal Time), and carries out time verification. The time server at Amano Timing Center, where the time-stamping is provided, is the only time server operating in Japan under the remote supervisory control of the NIST (National Institute of Standards and Technology), and consistently operates high-precision and highly reliable clocks. With electronic seals, it was possible to identify 'who' but has been impossible to prove 'when'. However, by linking the Amano Timing Center to the 'jaiser' via IP-VPN, it becomes possible to accurately and reliably record the time on documents to which an electronic seal has been applied.

With the promotion of the "e-Japan" Plan and the spread of computerization in business, it is considered that the needs will increase for services such as time verification and time clock services. The Ministry of Public Management, Home Affairs, Posts and Telecommunications has named such services 'Time Business', and is working towards the early spread of Time Business through the Time Business Forum.

Nissho Iwai and Amano will raise product awareness and aim to expand Electronic Seal System sales by targeting the introduction of systems for documentation that requires time verification, such as important contracts, documents concerning intellectual property rights such as patents, various application forms and bid documents for e-government. 

Page top