Kiosk Security Mat

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By Stephanie Kropkowski, Director of Marketing and Sales, KioWare
 
As a kiosk software supplier, one of our biggest attention grabbers when exhibiting at tradeshows is a kiosk with an attached security mat. We get a lot of “This isn’t going to weigh me, is it?” jokes from visitors. They are genuinely intrigued by what will happen when they step on the security mat.
 
When a visitor does step onto the mat, the kiosk recognises that there is a user and the start page appears. The user can then safely navigate through the application, knowing that the security mat will identify when they walk away from the kiosk.
 
The KioWare kiosk software, in conjunction with a security mat, such as Larco security mats, will clear all cookies, cache and user history immediately after the user has stepped off the mat. Normally, kiosk software is configured to restart the application and clear user history after a specified period of idle time, which creates a gray area where a user may or may not be at the kiosk. This does not provide the necessary security for some applications, such as human resources kiosks or banking kiosks. Using a security mat, the kiosk always knows where a user is, either at the kiosk, or away from it.
 
This software is also configurable with retractable kiosk printers, so that if the printed document is forgotten by the user, it is retracted back to an internal disposal box, thus maintaining privacy.
 
While these features are fun attention grabbers at tradeshows, they are a must for kiosk projects where user security and privacy are critical. Kiosk applications in human resources and banking rely on the protection that hardware peripherals like security mats and retractable printers provide, as well as the ease of implementing those peripherals with the application. Users also feel that their information is secure, giving them the confidence to interact with the kiosk.