Dolby Digital Cinema server has officially got its Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS) 140-2 Level 3 validation certificate from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), a nonregulatory federal agency within the US Department of Commerce.

The Dolby Digital Cinema server is the first to achieve the highest level of content protection security specified by the Digital Cinema Initiative (DCI). All Dolby Digital Cinema servers, currently in over 400 cinemas worldwide, meet the FIPS Level 3 requirements.

Dolby Laboratories, Executive Vice President, Products and Technology, Tim Partridge stated, “We are proud to reach this important milestone, as our team has been diligent in its efforts to make Dolby Digital Cinema DCI compliant to the fullest extent possible. To be the first company awarded the FIPS Level 3 certification in digital cinema validates our engineering approach. Studios and exhibitors alike can be reassured that Dolby has their best interests in mind by committing to the highest levels of content security specified by DCI in every location.”

FIPS 140-2 are security standards adopted by DCI and cover detailed requirements for physical security, software, interfaces, key management, and cryptographic algorithms.

To earn the certification, the Dolby Digital Cinema server underwent a testing process by InfoGard Laboratories, an accredited cryptographic module testing laboratory, which performed extensive analysis of the design and construction of the unit. InfoGard submitted its test report to NIST, which issued the FIPS 140-2 Level 3 validation certificate.

InfoGard Laboratories, General Manager and Laboratory, Thomas Caddy added, “Due to the specialized design and documentation requirements combined with the rigorous validation testing, FIPS 140-2 Level 3 is one of the toughest objectives for DCI server manufacturers to meet. We congratulate Dolby for achieving this significant milestone.”