MobileIron and Entrust Datacard have announced a technology alliance partnership to deliver derived credentials for next-generation multifactor authentication, according to a joint press release from the companies.

MobileIron Derived Credentials with Entrust IdentityGuard Mobile Smart Credential will provide government agencies that want to use mobile technologies the ability to protect sensitive data while eliminating the need for passwords and hardware tokens, according to the announcement.

Derived Credentials will allow organizations that are using smart cards for authentication to extend this technology to mobile devices, providing strong, password-less authentication to the most sensitive of resources. The new product will support the General Services Administration's Federal Identity, Credential, and Access Management architecture. While government is the catalyst for Derived Credentials, this methodology is directly relevant to any organization moving to more secure forms of authentication, according to the announcement.

"Government agencies have been waiting for years to use Derived Credentials and we're pleased to be the first EMM specialist to bring a solution to market," said Barry Mainz, president and CEO of MobileIron. "This is a perfect example of how we design solutions that meet both the usability and security requirements of our customers. Sacrificing one for the other is not an option. Using Derived Credentials, agencies will be able to remove the need for users to enter passwords on a mobile device, regardless of which identity provider is being used."