Nanoteq (www.nanoteq.com) was established in 1988 as a developer of high-level cryptographic products for the most complex military and financial applications, and has transformed itself into a global security products and solutions provider. Nanoteq was 100% owned by Comparex but this changed to the Business Connexion Group when the former company entered into a black empowerment deal with Business Connexion during 2004.
The new Business Connexion Group is one of the largest black-empowered ICT companies in southern Africa. With Telkom now in the process of acquiring Business Connexion, Nanoteq may well be spun off as a separate entity as its products are not core to the other business. Nanoteq operates independently out of new and recently-expanded premises in the Highveld Technopark in Centurion.
The highly specialised development component of Nanoteq has consistently delivered classified security solutions for the various governments since the company's involvement as a security solution and system integrator in 1992. Drawing on its technological strengths as a developer of high-level cryptographic products, its competitive product offerings include high-grade security modules which are used to encrypt telecommunication and network communication - whether satellite, fixed line or mobile and whether voice, fax or data.
Partly as a sideline to its core business, Nanoteq developed the Keeloq code-hopping technology that was licensed to many local and overseas companies for use in their vehicle security systems. In March 1995, the technology was licensed by the mighty Microchip Technology in the USA. By November that same year it was announced that Microchip was going to purchase the Keeloq code-hopping technology from Nanoteq. The purchase price included a $10 million cash payment but the other terms have not been released. Certain members of the development team transferred to Microchip as part of the terms, and some of those individuals have remained in the USA. As far as Nanoteq was concerned, it was not core technology and the local company realised that Microchip had the manufacturing, marketing and worldwide sales distribution channels necessary to make Keeloq the industry standard, which it still is today.
Nanoteq has often been referred to as South Africa's most innovative company, and if you can sell technology like Keeloq to Microchip, the opinion is reinforced. More recently (January 2001) local company Prism acquired the Security Module Group Division from Nanoteq, the purchase enhancing Prism's capabilities in the area of hardware cryptographic modules. No details of the purchase price are available. Since the Microchip takeover we had Thawte, but that was a different case, as this local secure transaction company was taking market share from the world leader, Verisign. The prime objective here was to kill the local business, not to take it forward on a global basis.
From its headquarters in Centurion (at the Highveld Techno Park) Nanoteq serves a network of local and global clients that include various government agencies, the Department of defence, foreign governments, together with military installations and financial institutions. Nanoteq's range of classified high security products and solutions are customisable for every customer, ensuring uniqueness without compromising security.
In January 2004, UUNET SA, this country's leading provider of Internet services, renewed its partnership with Nanoteq. This followed on the success of an initial partnership agreement signed in 2001. In January this year, UUNET was re-branded to Verizon Business SA. Nanoteq will continue to supply a range of best-of-breed security services and products to Verizon Business SA's customer base.
During 2001 Nanoteq unveiled a new IT Security 'Health Plan' to ensure that companies are fully-protected from both inside and outside intruders, this Health Plan is based on two existing areas of activity, namely a security health check and knowledge sharing. Knowledge sharing is an assessment to determine the level of security awareness amongst average customers. Nanoteq also provides a consultation programme designed to enhance security awareness amongst the company's own employees.
In terms of cryptographic hardware, Nanoteq offers a full range of products that includes:
* CodeVoice: a range of products covering PSTN, mobile and avionics applications.
* CodeFax: a product range covering Code fax S 7 F, avionics and CipherFax 100 and 100S. The last two products support Group 3 fax machines such as the Panasonic M280 and UF770 fax machines.
* Cipher 160: which is fax machine independent and has four models, V.24, X.21, V.35 and G.703 - the choice being based on the use of synchronous or asynchronous links and the interface (RS232, V.11 and V.21 are electrical interfaces supported).
* In the network and file security domain, Nanoteq offers the IP Granite range of IP Seq-based IP security products, as well as the FileSeq range of file security products.
* A key management system (KMS) which is used with the CodeVoice product range.
* Administration tools.
Nanoteq's website does not provide full specifications for these products, but can make an e-mail enquiry so that Nanoteq can check out your credentials.
As an example, CodeVoice PSTN is designed for fixed line use via the public switched telephone network (PSTN). It is for desktop use requiring mains power. It can communicate via several satellites and can also communicate using an external modem. Data rates are 2,4 to 12 Kbps and it is fully compatible with the other CodeVoice products (eg, mobile and avionics).
The CodeFax range of products offers digital fax security between standard Group 3 fax machines using different networks. Features include 128-bit key length cryptographic algorithms with IDEA (International Data Encryption Algorithm) as the default. Also included are public key-based key management with blacklisting, smartcard-based key tokens, 1024-bit RSA-based identification (2048 bit under development), Diffle-Hellman-based session key exchange and session keys based on hardware random number generation.
In addition to these standard products it should be remembered that Nanoteq's forté is the development of custom communications products and subsystems based on cryptographic modules. The resources available for custom development include an in-house development team, in-house expertise in embedded security and product development, cryptographic algorithms and related protocols, and VoiceCoder-Crypto Module building blocks.
Nanoteq do product customisation, subsystem development and product development according to end-user requirements and local conditions, including customisation of security functionality (such as custom crypto algorithms) and implementing crypto/security functionality.
Nanoteq's encryption technology is world-class and the company's growth and new ideas come from a constant flow of students from the University of Pretoria. The company is sensitive in regard to whom it sells its technology to, as in the wrong hands, it would create havoc for police and intelligence services who are monitoring calls and faxes transmitted to or from suspected criminals.
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