What is Homeland Security Presidential Directive – 12 (HSPD-12)?
On August 27, 2004, President Bush issued Homeland Security Presidential Directive 12 (HSPD-12) “Policy for a Common Identification Standard for Federal Employees and Contractors.” The goal of HSPD-12 is to create a unified standard for all federal government IDs so that they can be used at physical and online access points. HSPD-12 called upon the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to develop the actual technical standard, and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to manage implementation of the credentials. The uses of the credentials are left to the agencies themselves to decide. HSPD-12 calls for all federal employees and contractors to use a standard smart credential to verify their identity for secure access to federal buildings and information systems. The directive set October 2008 as the deadline for complying with the order.
