Smartphones instead of Plastic Cards: Modern and Digital Access Management

Thanks to Mobile Access, the new solution from Bosch, access to buildings and restricted areas can now be managed without additional identification media such as plastic cards. Mobile Access is fully integrated into the tried-and-tested Access Management System from Bosch and offers numerous benefits in terms of efficiency, security, and convenience for building owners, employees, and visitors.

Configure Access Authorizations Efficiently and Assign Them Remotely

A few clicks are all it takes for authorized individuals, such as Facility Management or IT staff, to configure and create access authorizations in their local Access Management System. Visitor and employee data can then be managed with ease using an intuitive, browser-based interface. For example, authorization credentials can be sent remotely and easily as a link or a QR code to an app on the end users’ mobile devices and can then be deleted again as necessary. “Most people always carry their smartphones with them everywhere they go. Storing authorization credentials on mobile devices has several advantages,” explains Gregor Schlechtriem, Senior Vice President at Bosch Building Technologies, adding: “You provide both employees and visitors with a modern, easy-to-use, and sustainable solution that means they don’t have to resort to additional forms of identification like plastic cards. Using the appropriate settings, they don’t even have to take their smartphone out of their pocket. The app can run in the background once started, so the smartphone’s home screen doesn’t have to be unlocked to open doors.” This solution also enhances accessibility, and is a major advantage for wheelchair users, for example, who are often unable to reach card reader machines.

Between Smartphone and Reader: Forgery-proof Certificates for Transmission of Credentials

Mobile Access leverages the Bosch Group’s many years of experience with products and systems in the field of security, safety, and communications. The new solution modernizes access control without compromising on high security standards. Mobile Access uses forgery-proof certificates to transmit authorization credentials via BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy) between the smartphone and the reader and employs the encrypted OSDP protocol between the reader and controller.

The solution also supports two-factor authentication that can be configured on the readers. Visitors and employees are then prompted to unlock their smartphone to gain access, for instance by using their Face ID. This makes it especially easy to comply with strict data protection laws, because sensitive personal data does not have to be stored on local systems. That means building operators also benefit from secure and cost-effective two-factor authentication. Additionally, no user registration is needed to use the app, meaning no personal data is stored there for this purpose either.

Monthly Subscription Fees are Eliminated: Solution can be Operated Locally

Bosch Mobile Access combines efficiency, security, and convenience with a robust and flexible core. The new feature is fully integrated into the Bosch access management solution. Access management systems from Bosch thus combine reliable and robust hardware components, such as the Bosch Access Modular Controller (AMC2), with digital and browser-based services for managing authorizations for visitors and employees. The user interfaces are intuitive and can also be used to manage mobile authorization credentials and authorizations. The Bosch access management software offers multiple features that streamline manual processes, such as setting up time patterns and automated authorization changes, thereby making access and visitor management efficient and flexible. The solution can be operated on an entirely local basis, meaning there is no need to use a cloud platform to manage personal data. By avoiding a cloud platform, organizations can save on the associated fees they would otherwise have to pay, usually in the form of a monthly subscription. Bosch Mobile Access is compatible with software AMS 5.0.1 or BIS-ACE 5.0.1 and higher, as well as Lectus select premium readers equipped with BLE. The smartphone app that enables end users to store mobile authorization credentials on their smartphones is free and runs on both iOS and Android.

Mobile Access from Bosch will initially be available to customers in the Benelux region, Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, as well as Canada and the USA, with more countries to follow in the course of the year.