The ATAES132 offers many distinguishing features. First of all, the EEPROM has 32Kbits of secure storage available to end user applications. This allows for the storage of much more than just keys. For example, sensitive firmware code, fingerprints, pictures, user credentials, and so on could be stored. The ATAES132 supports flexible authentication options. Authentication is not limited to the component the EEPROM is sitting in; it is also available to the host to which it is communicating. For example, consider a mobile phone communicating with a mobile network. The ATAES132 can authenticate both the phone and the network. The authentication options are: inbound (the phone), outbound (the network), and mutual authentication.