Cylink Corporation Secures California Narcotics Enforcement System; Encrypted Communications Gives Agents Critical Weapon In War Against Criminal Cartels

3 February 1998
Source: Business Wire, February 3, 1998

Cylink Corporation Secures California Narcotics Enforcement System; Encrypted Communications Gives Agents Critical Weapon In War Against Criminal Cartels

February 3, 1998

SUNNYVALE, Calif. -- Cylink Corporation (NASDAQ:CYLK), a leading provider of network security and management solutions since 1984, announces that it is securing the highly-classified wide area network of the California Department of Justice Statewide Integrated Narcotics System (SINS). Cylink's Hardware Link Encryptors will encrypt and protect confidential information gathered on narcotics trafficking and stored in SINS. "SINS is a crucial weapon in the war against drugs. Without Cylink's critical encryption technology to protect investigation data from increasingly tech-savvy criminals, SINS could be compromised," said Gail Overhouse, SINS Project Director for the California Department of Justice.

SINS allows law enforcement organizations to rapidly share and exchange information, track and geographically display information about criminal activity, and provides a sophisticated system for managing and tracking complex case information.

"Information is a precious resource. When it is compromised, companies and, at times, entire industries are placed at risk," said Fernand Sarrat, president and CEO of Cylink. "Law enforcement agencies rely heavily on information as they plan and execute operations. It is critical that they be able to securely access and share covert information without fear of it being accessed by the very criminals they are investigating."

Law enforcement officers depend on immediate access to critical information, not only to plan and execute operations, but to protect their lives as well. According to the Department of Justice, officer deaths in California doubled from 1992 to 1995. SINS is an immense effort aimed at protecting officers, improving efforts to prosecute narcotics offenders, increasing the number of successful convictions, and helping officers spend more time on the streets and less time filling out paperwork. It is estimated that narcotics enforcement agents spend about 40 percent of their time locating and acquiring suspect information. SINS' major role is to make this task easier and quicker.

The sophisticated SINS network was developed by the Department of Justice Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement, Western States Information Network, Los Angeles County Regional Criminal Information Clearinghouse, and San Diego and Imperial counties Narcotics Information Network. Each organization pooled their federal funding resources to develop the comprehensive, integrated statewide program based on a consistent technology platform. The SINS contract was awarded to Digital Equipment Corporation, the project's prime contractor for hardware, software, application development, deployment and services. Digital this year awarded the security contract to Cylink.

"Cylink provides progressive information security," said Mike Haralson, Digital's account manager for the State of California. "They were an ideal partner to work with in delivering security as part of the overall solution."

The objective of SINS is to bring together, through a single computer entry, all existing information held by various agencies on many computer systems that could affect narcotics information gathering and enforcement operations. Originally developed for the State of California, SINS has evolved into a nationwide system, providing information to 1,050 statewide and 50,000 nationwide personnel, and more than 5,000 law enforcement agencies. Organizations utilizing SINS include the FBI, IRS, U.S. Customs, U.S. Attorney General, Drug Enforcement Agency, Border Patrol, and local police and sheriff's departments. Other countries are now evaluating the SINS architecture for similar uses.

"SINS is light years ahead of how we previously operated. It gives our officers an advantage in capturing and arresting criminals," said Karen Aumond, administrator of the Western States Information Network.

SINS combines relational databases, a geographic information system, computer imaging, remote access, state-of-the-art security, and other advanced technologies in a single, integrated network system. The system will store, compile, correlate, analyze, and integrate information gathered from jurisdictions throughout the state, making it easier for local law enforcement officers to identify distribution patterns and channels, obtain police and motor vehicle records, and trace money-laundering operations.

A high-speed communications network links SINS member criminal justice agencies so that information can be quickly entered, retrieved and shared. It uses relational database technology to store and effectively organize complex information related to a criminal investigation. This database technology allows data to be regionally organized and distributed so that maximum performance and accessibility is achieved.

A Geographic Information System (GIS) is used to graphically depict county maps and plot the information pertaining to an investigation or critical event so that field operations can be monitored based upon specific locations. SINS also has an imaging component that allows several types of media to be scanned, retrieved, stored, displayed and enhanced. These images can be linked to specific cases, subjects and activities within the SINS Case Management Information System.

Using any device on the SINS communications network, participating agencies can access the system through DOJ's Integrated Access Link (DIAL), which provides a highly simplified, single access method for linking with a broad spectrum of public and government databases. DIAL provides a common user interface to specific DOJ applications. Through DIAL, participating agencies can enter a suspect's name, an address, or other search criteria and search against other databases tied to the SINS network.

Available databases include criminal history, wanted persons, stolen vehicles, and Department of Motor Vehicle records. The integrated data might form the basis of an intelligence gathering project, a major surveillance operation, or a drug use trends analysis. SINS employs sophisticated biometric fingerprint technology to ensure that only those who are authorized gain access to the system. Cylink's encryption technology protects the transmission of information across the network.

About Cylink Corp.

Cylink Corporation, and its wholly owned subsidiary, Algorithmic Research, are leading providers of network security solutions and wireless communications. Their security products enable secure transmission of data over networks, including local area networks (LANs), wide area networks (WANs) and public packet switched networks, such as the Internet. Cylink serves Fortune 500 companies, multinational financial institutions, and many international government agencies. For additional product or investor information, visit Cylink's Home page at http://www.cylink.com.

Note: Except for the historical information contained herein, matters discussed in this release are forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, and actual results could be materially different. Forward-looking statements include statements concerning the size of the SINS program and Cylink's opportunity to deploy its products within the SINS network.. Factors that could cause actual results to differ include an unexpected decrease or cancellation of orders and the possible introduction of new technologies and other risk factors listed from time to time in the company's SEC reports, including but not limited to the report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 1996, and its reports on Forms 10-Q and the Annual Report to shareholders.