ComSense says its ultrasonic technology, dubbed Comdot, enables credit cards and other plastic cards to communicate safely and conveniently with Internet-based applications.

The company aims to provide the "last yard of e-Commerce," from the PC to the consumer's credit card. Cardholders press a Comdot logo on the card to interface with a PC and "Comdot-ready" Web site. Since no card reader or special setup is required, Comdot works at home, at work and on the road.

"The ComSense card is based on a simple concept: you press a button on the card and a sound-based code authenticates the user via their PC's built-in microphone and client software," says Chris Christiansen, director of IDC's Internet security programme. "Beyond just PC and network passwords, it could also function as a single sign-on application for Web access."

Alon Atsmon, president and chief executive officer of ComSense, comments: "We believe we have accomplished a goal that has eluded the card industry for a long time - evolving the bankcard into a ubiquitous, secure, and convenient electronic commerce platform.

One of the first implementations of Comdot technology will be for use with credit cards. ComSense says it is working with Visa to explore opportunities for its member banks and their cardholders. With Comdot, card issuers turn standard bankcards into super-thin Internet devices, giving cardholders instant, secure, private access directly to their bank or credit card accounts.

The Comdot technology is currently available in commercial quantities, and is now being implemented in large-scale pilots. ComSense says it aims to place bankcard association approved cards into circulation with its first set of major credit card issuers during the fourth quarter of 2000.

Here's how it works. Even though the surface is flat like a normal card, pressing the Comdot button activates an internal switch. The card emits an ultrasonic sound signal that contains the identification message and an encrypted security code generated by the microprocessor within the card. An audible sound confirms to the user that the card is working.

Any standard microphone attached to or built in a PC receives the signal and sends it to the PC's sound card, which turns the sound signal into digital information for use by applications. A small, 30 Kbyte communications client, that is either permanently installed on the PC or temporarily installed from a Comdot-enabled Web page, recognizes the message data, and passes that data along to an Internet server. Clicking the Comdot button activates different functions based on the context of its use.

The remote server verifies the identity and authenticity of the message, and then acts on the instructions working in conjunction with the host server. The message includes a highly secure encrypted one-time code used for authentication and identification, enhancing the security.

Founded in mid-1998, ComSense Technologies has its international headquarters in New York City, with research and development at its home office in Tel Aviv, Israel, and manufacturing in San Jose, California.