SAN DIEGO, CA, March 24, 2004 - ImageWare® Systems, Inc. (AMEX: IW), a leading global provider of digital imaging, secure credential and biometric solutions, today announced the signing of a co-marketing agreement with ActivCard Corp. (NASDAQ: ACTI), a global provider of strong authentication and trusted digital identity solutions for secure remote access, single sign-on and enterprise access cards. The companies will collaborate to market identity management and badging solutions that enable convergence of physical and digital credentials for secure access and smart card-based identification capabilities.

The respective offerings of the companies address various technology requirements for streamlined, secure issuance and management of corporate IDs – as well as meet the needs of state, local, federal government and law enforcement ID card programs. Pursuant to the terms of the agreement, both companies will collaborate on marketing the combined benefits of ActivCard authentication and card management capabilities with ImageWare secure credential and biometric technologies. This relationship brings together ImageWare’s expertise and successful deployments of digital imaging and card printing solutions with proven ActivCard chip-based ID card and credential lifecycle management software – representing end-to-end user management, credentialing, provisioning, access management and biometric solutions that can be integrated with and enhance the offerings of physical security vendors.

ImageWare and ActivCard will undertake joint marketing initiatives in order to develop new business opportunities together through new and existing distributors, channels and other business relationships. The two companies also intend to work together to contribute to the development of industry standards within their joint areas of expertise.

“Our shared commitment to offering best-of-class solutions for the secure creation and issuance of ID cards, as well as the management of unique credentials assigned to each cardholder, makes the relationship with ImageWare a natural complement. We look forward to the impact of our initiatives to address the rapidly growing market for unified ID cards that consolidate physical and IT security,” stated Ed MacBeth, ActivCard’s vice president of worldwide channel sales and business development. “It’s a clear trend that our enterprise and government customers are embracing this vision -- and that they have requirements for next generation solutions that converge digital identities and multiple applications on a single card.”

“Today’s announcement represents a significant commitment to bringing focus and solutions to the challenge of managing people, credentials and access,” said Bill Willis, ImageWare’s senior vice president of technology and business development. ”Working in partnership with leaders like ActivCard, ImageWare is committed to providing governments and industries with the ability to manage the issuance and lifecycle of digital identities and credentials.”

About ActivCard
ActivCard, www.activcard.com, is a global provider of strong authentication and trusted digital identity solutions for secure remote access, single sign-on and enterprise access cards. Our scalable systems and strong authentication solutions are trusted by organizations – from enterprise to governments around the world. ActivCard delivers maximum Return On Identity™ (ROI) through increased security, reduced cost, and user convenience. The modular product design allows our customers to add capabilities as required, preserving their investment.

About ImageWare Systems, Inc.
ImageWare Systems, Inc. (AMEX:IW), is a leading developer and provider of identity management solutions, providing biometric, secure credential, law enforcement and digital imaging technologies. Scalable for worldwide deployment, the Company's biometric product line includes a multi-biometric engine that is hardware and algorithm independent, enabling the enrollment and management of unlimited population sizes. ImageWare's identification products are used to manage and issue secure credentials including national IDs, passports, driver licenses, smart cards and access control credentials. ImageWare's digital booking products provide law enforcement with integrated mug shot, fingerprint Livescan and investigative capabilities. The Company also provides comprehensive digital workflow solutions for the professional photography industry. ImageWare is headquartered in San Diego, with offices in Washington DC and Canada. For more information visit www.iwsinc.com.

Safe Harbor Statement
This news release may contain forward-looking statements made pursuant to the “safe harbor” provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. While these statements are meant to convey to the public the company's progress, business opportunities and growth prospects, readers are cautioned that such forward-looking statements represent management's opinion. While management believes such representation to be true and accurate based on the information available to the company, actual results may differ materially from those described. The company's operations and business prospects are always subject to risks and uncertainties. Important facts that may cause actual results to differ are set forth in the company’s periodic filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

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