US government advised to improve access control provisions at multiple federal facilities

The US government has been advised to bolster security and access control provisions at its federal facilities, a recent news report has been able to suggest.

Around 14 years ago, the George W. Bush administration issued a directive to ensure federal workers and contractors are who they say they are when entering federal buildings. However, in a report published in late December 2018, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) has revealed that progress has been lacking, especially in the digital age.

The organization revealed that agencies were taking steps to improve security, but not quickly enough. Of the five selected agencies reviewed by GAO, several issues came up in regards to the physical access control systems (PACS) — which verify identification information at many agencies.

PACS include personal identity verification (PIV) cards, card readers and any other technology that electronically confirms employee and contractor identities in order to validate their access to facilities.

Lori Rectanus, director of the physical infrastructure team at GAO, commented: "So, yes, we do run the risk of either nefarious actors pretending to be government employees and contractors getting into buildings or even employees themselves are disgruntled or contractors who may be getting in inappropriately and getting access to places that they shouldn't."

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