The General Services Administration (GSA) is continuing to increase adoption of its Login.gov service, reaching 38.8 million active users as of September and supplying service to 42 Federal partner agencies, according to new data from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).
OMB highlighted the Login.gov progress in its latest quarterly Agency Priority Goal (APG) updates on Performance.gov – which stem from the Biden Harris administration’s President’s Management Agenda (PMA) released in November 2021.
In GSA’s APG progress update for this quarter, the agency said use of Login.gov – which enables users to access participating government agencies with only one username and account – continues to grow.
The service added 9.6 million active users and 27 integrated applications in the third quarter of fiscal year (FY) 2023, which ended on June 30.
A GSA spokesperson told MeriTalk that the agency fully expects to “substantially exceed” the 41 million active users the agency reported at the end of FY2022. This means GSA should come close to reaching its target goal to hit 55.5 million active users by Sept. 30, which marks the end of FY2023.
Notably, a scathing inspector general (IG) report in March exposed GSA for years of misleading Federal agencies on the security of its Login.gov platform.
According to the IG report, GSA knowingly billed customer agencies over $10 million for Login.gov services that purported to meet National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) digital identity guidelines – Identity Assurance Level 2 (IAL2) requirements – but did not.
In addition, the IG found that GSA officials used misleading language to secure additional funds for Login.gov, including in its Technology Modernization Fund (TMF) application. Login.gov received a whopping $187 million TMF funding award in late 2021.
GSA has since addressed the issue, and the agency noted in its latest quarterly update that it has made improvements to core product capabilities.
One key improvement is the Login.gov program’s expanded adoption of the in-person identity proofing pilot with the U.S. Postal Service (USPS), which launched in February. GSA said it has also “continued to strengthen operations and functionality around the major investments in contact center support and anti-fraud controls that were made in Q2.”
“Even as the program focuses on delivering major new enhancements to the public, it continues to make improvements to the core service,” GSA said in the APG progress update. “For example, user experience improvements to the authentication service resulted in a 14 percent increase in account creation success and a 12 percent increase in the adoption of stronger MFA options.”
“A number of improvements were also made to the identity verification service, such as improving accessibility for users that rely on screen readers, improving address guidance for Puerto Rican users, and streamlining a number of steps in the full identity verification process,” it added.
Separately, GSA announced today that all Cabinet agencies are now using Login.gov for at least one program or application.
“We’re pleased to reach this important milestone of all Cabinet departments now using Login.gov,” said GSA Administrator Robin Carnahan. “It’s clear throughout the Federal government that the public wants and needs a secure, simple way to access the benefits they deserve in a way that protects their privacy and prevents fraud.”
