Verizon Business announced yesterday that it will integrate access management software and applications from Symark into the assortment of products and services it bundles for government customers.

Designed to better aid federal agencies in complying with the access control and accountability requirements mandated by updated Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA) regulations, Verizon Business’ new partnership with Agoura Hills, Calif.-based Symark brings the Symark PowerSeries suite into the Verizon Business fold. According to Verizon Business executives, the move augments and complements the set of identity management products picked up through the company’s landmark acquisition in 2007.

“Verizon Business, through its acquisition of Cybertrust and its identity management solution, acquired a strong capability to help its customers efficiently manage user identities across multiple systems and applications,” Susan Zeleniak, group president of Verizon Business’ Verizon Federal division, said in a statement. “Adding Symark's PowerSeries solutions enables Verizon Business to even more comprehensively help agencies manage user activities and address insider threats."

PowerSeries focuses on password management and provisioning within heterogeneous UNIX and Linux environments. It also helps extend ActiveDirectory access control into Unix and Linux environments in order to create a single sign-on infrastructure across Windows, Unix and Linux servers.

The deal between Verizon Business and Symark comes right on the heels of the publication of the final draft of the National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST) Special Publication 800-53, Revision 3. Published on Aug. 3, this <a href=” http://csrc.nist.gov/publications/nistpubs/800-53-Rev3/sp800-53-rev3-final.pdf”>Guide for Assessing the Security Controls in Federal Information Systems and Organizations</a> lays the foundation for a standard set of security controls across civilian and military agencies in the federal government.