Do the PIV card printers regularly work at any VA?

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Ours was down for sometime (1-2 weeks), and I kept having to go back for my new card. Then, they had to reprint it because the PIV chip wasn't working properly on the first one printed.

Also, they sent an interoffice email recently to our VISN that said all PIV chips must be active for use. I kind of disregarded the email because I just manually enter in my login code and never use the chip reader (easier for me).

Funny that you ask. Hope this helps.
 
no
 
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Nope. Ours have been down. They are already about a week late in printing my renewal PIV. In another week it expires and I'll just cancel all of my clinics until they fix it. Maybe catch up on some reading, who knows?
 
And what this "PIV enforcement" thing they are doing? I get a bunch of emails, bur inevitably lack the motivation and endurance to read about the matter.
 
erg923 said:
And what this "PIV enforcement" thing they are doing? I get a bunch of emails, bur inevitably lack the motivation and endurance to read about the matter.
Click to expand...

I believe it's going to require use of PIV cards to log in (i.e., no longer able to use username/password). Which would mean that if your PIV isn't working, you're locked out of the system.

That's been my reading of it, anyway.

Our PIV printer has, I believe, worked fairly consistently. Unfortunately, due to limited staff, they're booked out quite a ways. Luckily I had mine renewed before the current crunch hit.
 
They've been talking about going PIV-only since I was on internship if not before, so this sounds like it was a long time coming. I agree, though, that it's generally easier for me to enter my username/password than use the PIV card, but the rationale seems to be increased security. Having username/password as a backup certainly seems worthwhile, though, at least for computers physically located within the VA/on the VA's firewall. For those who do telework, I could see requiring PIV-only access at all times.
 
Haha, on internship my chip stopped working three different times. I had to get my badge reprinted twice, and even had to go through the fingerprinting process again! It was so incredibly annoying. I think the machine wasn't working when I started my post doc, too.

And yeah, I'm really annoyed about the new requirement because I ALWAYS leave my badge in the computer. Without fail. The easiest solution has been to just login using my user ID and password, and now I won't be able to do that anymore.
 
You down with P.I.V.? Yeah you know me...

So the people who want to check their email at home will have to get a fancy little PIV card reader.
 
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Pragma said:
You down with P.I.V.? Yeah you know me...

So the people who want to check their email at home will have to get a fancy little PIV card reader.
Click to expand...

Yep, I believe so. Which may be a solid excuse not to do it. Although apparently the PIV readers are pretty easy to get.
 
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Pragma said:
You down with P.I.V.? Yeah you know me...

So the people who want to check their email at home will have to get a fancy little PIV card reader.
Click to expand...

AcronymAllergy said:
Yep, I believe so. Which may be a solid excuse not to do it. Although apparently the PIV readers are pretty easy to get.
Click to expand...

erg923 said:
NEVER
Click to expand...

Actually, no. You can use the Mobile Pass app for two step authentication. It's annoying, but less annoying than having to get a card reader. And I believe that the VA has already rolled out that change.
 
cara susanna said:
Actually, no. You can use the Mobile Pass app for two step authentication. It's annoying, but less annoying than having to get a card reader. And I believe that the VA has already rolled out that change.
Click to expand...

Hmm, haven't heard of that before, interesting.

You can also request exemptions (or whatever they call it), but I don't know what would be required for approval, and it sounds like they're time-limited.
 
cara susanna said:
Actually, no. You can use the Mobile Pass app for two step authentication. It's annoying, but less annoying than having to get a card reader. And I believe that the VA has already rolled out that change.
Click to expand...

Yeah, the Mobile Pass app isn't anywhere near as annoying as an at-home PIV reader. It did take me a while to get used to needing to have my phone in front of me when logging in from home, but I'm used to it now. It's not too bad.
 
Ugh, nevermind. You do need a PIV card reader for remote access.
 
There may be a problem for remote Mac users, I think. And Mobile Pass stopped working for me once the PIV enforcement started, which is super annoying.
 
PsychPhDStudent said:
ugghh any details on the problem? Working on getting remote access as we speak
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According to IT, you need a card reader no matter what. Mobile Pass isn't good enough anymore. Not sure why they made us get it, then, but hey...
 
Unless you are in supervisory or VACO position, why would someone need or want remote access?
 
I was going to mention the MHA exemption/exception. I don't know the specifics of it, but I know I'm still technically able to log in via username/password. I still use my PIV card, though, because it helps with other things (e.g., encrypted emails, JLV, SSOi).
 
cara susanna said:
According to IT, you need a card reader no matter what. Mobile Pass isn't good enough anymore. Not sure why they made us get it, then, but hey...
Click to expand...

That's so frustrating! I'm so irritated that I went through all the hassle of getting Mobile Pass, only for it to be irrelevant within months.
 
Why would anyone expect the equipment at the VA to work? After all the psychologists at the VA rarely work!
:poke:
Just couldn't resist that one. Seriously, my experience of psychology and psychologists at the one VA where I worked was that the people and services provided were top-notch and far superior to any other facility where I have been since. Now if they could just fix that darn PIV machine.
 
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