Former ValiCert, MasterCard Executives Join Identrus to Advance Global Trust System for B2B e-commerce

Business Wire, Oct 10, 2000

Business/Technology Editors

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 10, 2000

Khaja E. Ahmed joins company as chief technology officer,

and Peter J. Cerra becomes vice president of product management

Two senior executives with deep experience in financial services and e-commerce security have joined Identrus(TM) LLC, the world's leading provider of identity trust for global business-to-business Internet commerce. Khaja E. Ahmed, formerly of ValiCert, becomes the company's chief technology officer, and Peter J. Cerra, formerly of MasterCard, becomes vice president of product management.

"Accomplished executives like Khaja and Peter will help Identrus maximize the opportunities presented by our growing number of financial institutions and technology partners," said Identrus President and CEO Guy S. Tallent. "We look forward to their success."

Khaja E. Ahmed, chief technology officer

Ahmed has made a career of applying security technology innovations to real-world business problems. He is responsible for enhancing the performance, reliability and user experience of the Identrus global trust system. In 1992, Ahmed developed a 35,000-user system for the IRS that secures taxpayer data. Over the last decade, he was consulted on the development of several projects in information security and public key infrastructures (PKIs) for the U.S. Navy, Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA), the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) and the Department of Treasury. In 1999, as director of engineering at ValiCert, he managed the engineering team that developed the first global multi-protocol certificate validation service. He has also worked on some of the industry's first security solutions based on smart cards and other tokens.

Ahmed started his technology career with his own systems consulting business in India in 1986. For the past 10 years, he has focused on information security. At ValiCert, he was responsible for the ValiCert Validation Authority and Transaction Authority products. From 1990 to 1995, he worked for a New Hampshire startup called Datamedia Corp. through its acquisition by AXENT Technologies Inc., a leader in information security. Ahmed, who has taught computer architecture at the master's level, earned a master's degree in computer information systems in 1990 from New Hampshire College and an MBA in marketing in 1985 from Pune University, India. He was valedictorian in both programs. He earned a bachelor's degree in economics from Osmania University in 1982, also in India.

Peter J. Cerra, vice president product management

Cerra has more than 16 years experience in helping new technology companies succeed. He has been involved in numerous smart card implementations around the globe during the decade he spent in that industry. As vice president of product management for Identrus, Cerra is responsible for developing new products and integrating financial institutions into the Identrus system.

Prior to joining Identrus, Cerra spent four years as vice president of smart card product and technology integration at MasterCard International. He was responsible for bringing the company's smart card business development efforts to member financial institutions in the United States and Canada. In addition, Cerra served for one year as president of Mondex USA, the electronic cash company's franchise for the United States territory.

Before joining MasterCard, Cerra spent eight years at AT&T in a series of project management, new product development and product marketing roles. During his tenure there, he directed the implementation of a pioneering smart card-based electronic toll collection initiative in the State of California on behalf of AT&T Smart Card Systems and Solutions.

Cerra earned a bachelor's degree in humanities from Saint Mary's University, Baltimore, Md., in 1977. Additionally, he is serving a second term on the Smart Card Forum Board of Directors.

About Identrus

Identrus, announced in April 1999, for the first time enables businesses to manage their business-to-business e-commerce risks through a trusted relationship with their financial institution. Identrus also enables corporate trading partners to eliminate the time, cost and complexity of building trust relationships with counterparts around the world. Identrus' legal and technical infrastructure is based on a set of uniform system rules, contracts and business practices for comprehensive trust and risk management. The infrastructure is open to financial institutions, their corporate customers and security vendors around the world. For more information, please visit www.identrus.com