IBM launches global economic security initiative

IBM Corp. will align many of the company's resources to go after the growing business opportunity presented by the need to make the shipping of freight, movement of people and similar commerce-related activities more secure.

Officials at Armonk, N.Y.-based IBM made the company's intentions known by launching the Global Movement Management initiative this week, a program that aims to address the technical and political challenges that impede efforts to improve security globally. The company also released a study on the issue.

IBM officials hope the effort will initiate a movement toward multinational standards for biometrics, cargo seals and data, said W. Scott Gould, a vice president for IBM Business Consulting Services.

"We are proposing a framework in which governance structures and system architectures can emerge naturally, in a collaborative and open-source environment, where anyone can contribute," Gould said.

Establishing worldwide standards will be a challenge; however, many parts of such a system that exist today are already built on open standards, he said.

IBM said it will align several of its business activities and expertise to develop this new platform. The areas include the company's expertise in customs, ports and border management; data analytics and risk management; secure communications and information sharing technologies; and identification and credentialing security systems.

IBM Corp., which has more than 319,000 employees and annual sales of $96.5 billion, ranks No. 14 on Washington Technology's 2005 Top 100 list, which measures federal contracting revenue.