Federal agencies have two years to move their public-facing websites onto Login.gov under a finalised White House memo that makes the platform the governmentwide sign-in and identity verification service.
Memo M-26-18, titled “Scaling Use of Login.gov to Deliver a Universal Sign-on for Public Services,” sets a staged schedule ahead of that deadline. Agencies have 60 days to give the Office of Management and Budget an inventory of their public-facing websites that use authentication. They then have 240 days to complete a digital identity risk assessment, and one year to adopt the General Services Administration’s Login.gov best practices.
The Defense Department, elements of the intelligence community and national security systems are exempt from the requirement.
OMB Director Russell Vought said the absence of a clear strategy had left agencies deploying a range of sign-on solutions and taking different approaches to digital identity. The result is members of the public juggling multiple sign-ons while the government pays more for the duplication.
GSA will lead implementation. The agency said it is prepared for increased demand with onboarding processes, partner support teams, technical documentation, integration assistance and operational playbooks.
“Expanding Login.gov adoption creates a more simple, safe, and consistent digital government experience for the American people,” said GSA Administrator Edward C. Forst. “GSA is proud to lead that transformation by bringing the operational capacity, technical expertise, and infrastructure needed to rapidly implement OMB’s directive.”
Login.gov sits within GSA’s Technology Transformation Services and is already used by local, state and federal partners. GSA said it is adding fraud protections, cutting pricing for agency partners and refreshing the user experience ahead of the service’s tenth anniversary in 2027. It described a layered security approach combining technical safeguards, risk-based detection, ongoing monitoring and a dedicated anti-fraud team.
The agency framed the expansion as a way to cut duplicative technology investments across government. The public would get a single account for reaching benefits, services and information, rather than separate usernames and passwords for each federal website.
The finalised memo follows the draft version circulated in late August, which set out the same default-sign-on approach. Capacity for the expansion has been building through procurement, including a $163 million call order to Xcelerate and Socure for identity proofing.
Sources: GSA, Federal News Network
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By Cass Kennedy
