HELSINKI, May 14 /PRNewswire/ -- Mobile signatures are a success, concludes a new report from Forrester Research. Tapping in to a growing trend, Forrester conducted research exclusively covering mobile signatures and has just published their findings, titled Extending Mobile Identity Beyond Authentication, which is now available free of charge through the Valimo Wireless website - http://www.valimo.com.

IT security and identity expert Bill Nagel, the author of this groundbreaking report, recognizes that "mobile authentication has taken hold in lots more countries - mobile signatures are a logical extension." Nagel states that, "nearly all of the banks and operators we spoke with report that the technology operates flawlessly and that the experiences of customers who use the system are very good."

Mobile signatures transform any mobile phone into an identity card and signature pen for online and mobile services. A user-chosen numerical password, or signing PIN, tells the SIM card to generate a digital signature. The digital signature is then sent via encrypted SMS; the password remains inside the secure SIM and is not exposed over any network.

Beyond secure online banking and eCommerce, mobile signatures enable, "a wide range of other new value-added consumer and corporate services, all based on the concept that a mobile phone and SIM card are the smart card and reader you always have with you," says Nagel.

"Consumers receive a clear benefit from mobile signature services: the ability to access online and mobile banking services without having to carry a separate token, as well as take advantage of previously "immobile" services like signing documents on the fly, verifying someone's age, accessing government services, and topping up their phones."

During their research, Forrester interviewed 15 vendor and user companies.

Valimo Wireless, one of multiple vendors featured in this report, is the market leader in providing a complete mobile signature solution, with all the necessary components productized and commercially proven. Valimo CEO Matti Rusi adds, "We appreciate that various industry analysts, including Forrester and other organizations, have been actively researching Valimo and mobile signatures. As an un-biased source, this latest report highlights the benefits of mobile signatures and identity, but also sheds light on some of the challenges we face."

This independent report effectively clarifies the various strengths and obstacles of mobile signatures from both a business and a technological perspective. Nagel summarizes that, "While easy to use, setting up a mobile signature service is complex and has yet to gain truly solid footing in many markets, but holds substantial promise for the future." The report goes more in detail about the potential implementation set-ups for various market types.

Read more by downloading the entire report, Extending Mobile Identity Beyond Authentication, from the Valimo website - http://www.valimo.com.

About Valimo Wireless

Helsinki-based Valimo Wireless is the leading provider of mobile signature solutions for mobile operator, bank and corporate customers.

Valimo's solutions are used by more than 40 European and Middle Eastern customers to date, assuring protection against security attacks like phishing, saving costs thanks to digitalization of various currently paper-based processes and introducing new business cases enabled by the convenient mobile signing capability.

Valimo is growing strongly with offices in Finland, France, Germany, Sweden and Turkey.

For more information about Valimo, please visit http://www.valimo.com

"Valimo" is a registered trademark of Valimo Wireless Ltd in Finland and other countries.

Copyright (c) 2008 Valimo Wireless Ltd. All rights reserved.

Contact: Valimo Wireless: Michael Waksman, Marketing Communications Manager, Valimo, Tel: +358-9-4365-0080