PIV stands for "Personal Identity Verification." It's pronounced “pɪv” (rhymes with “give”).

• Vertical, hard plastic card

• Has an employee’s first and last name, picture, and agency name printed on the front

• Different statuses have a different colorful bar running horizontally across the center of the badge: White indicates a federal employee, blue indicates a foreign national, and green indicates a federal contractor.

• These badges have embedded chips and use Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) technology to encrypt data and strengthen the security of employees' information. 

• Getting a PIV Badge requires a background check completed by the National Background Investigation Services, which is administered by the Defense Counterintelligence Security Agency. This is separate from your ISU background check. 

• PIV Badges are printed by DOE and shipped to the Lab. 

• PIV Badges can carry security clearance, although most employees at Ames Lab won’t have a security clearance.

• The process to get a PIV Badge can take up to 3 months. Getting a PIV Badge with security clearance usually takes between 9 and 12 months.

Yes, you may hear PIV Badges referred to as “HSPD-12 Badges” after Homeland Security Presidential Directive 12, which mandated government-wide standards for identification, authentication, and authorization to access federal facilities and information systems.

You do not need both an Ames Lab Badge and a PIV Badge. If you are eligible for a PIV Badge, we recommend waiting until we notify you that it’s your turn to get one and continuing to use your ISUCard for identification and door access in the meantime. If you are eligible for a PIV Badge, you can get an Ames Lab Badge now if you prefer to display that instead of your ISUCard, but you will still need to get a PIV Badge later.

We need to replace our current badge scanners before PIV Badges will work with them. This work is in progress, and targeted to be complete in 2026. We will keep you updated. You can keep using your ISUCard for now for door access. We will work with you to transfer door access from your ISUCard to your PIV Badge when it’s time.

• Increase safety and security

• Better understand and control access to protect research and equipment

• Align with DOE Order 473.1A: Physical Protection Program

Homeland Security Presidential Directive 12 (HSPD-12) was issued in 2004 to “enhance security, increase Government efficiency, reduce identity fraud, and protect personal privacy by establishing a mandatory, Government-wide standard for secure and reliable forms of identification issued by the Federal Government to its employees and contractors (including contractor employees).” This directive mandated federal standards for reliable and secure identification at government facilities. Because HSPD-12 led to the creation of standards for Personal Identity Verification (PIV) badges, you may hear the term “PIV Badge” used interchangeably with “HSPD-12 Badge.”

As part of an effort to start or improve badging practices at all of the national labs, the Department of Energy (DOE) has given us direct funding to pay for the new Badging Office in 105 TASF, its personnel, and software and hardware.

The total budget allocated to implement badges is just over $1.9 million. This includes the renovation of 105 TASF to become our new badging office; the hiring of 2 positions to help manage the program; all required hardware and software; and lanyards, clips, and badge holders. Everything is direct funded by the Department of Energy except for mandatory background checks for each PIV Badge, which are paid from Ames Lab overhead.

Yes, you can use your PIV Badge when you travel to get government rates at hotels and other places.

No, if you already have a PIV Badge, you do not need to get a new one at this time.

No, if you already have a PIV Badge, your renewal cycle will not change. Only employees who do not already have PIV Badges will start their renewal cycles with their birth months.

Each PIV Badge has a chip in it, and embedded within the chip are things called “digital certificates.” These certificates contain information about the badge itself, your name, email address, and a digital signature from the Department of Energy validating your identity. When a device reads your badge (like a door scanner or a computer), it examines these certificates to determine whether to let you into a building or network. The only personal information stored on your PIV Badge is your name and email address. Your PIV Badge also contains something called a “private key” that is protected by encryption and can only be accessed using a PIN number you’ll set up when you receive your PIV Badge. The private key on a PIV Badge is like a secret password that only you know. This key is used to unlock and prove your identity when you access secure systems or sign documents digitally. Just like you wouldn’t share your password with anyone, the private key is kept safe and secure on the badge, ensuring that only you can use it. Although we won’t use PIV Badges to access our computers anytime soon, these certificates would allow us to do that in the future.

When you come to pick up your PIV Badge, you’ll set a PIN number for it. The only way for anyone to access the private key on your card is with this PIN number, so never share it with anyone. We’ll also give you a badge holder that blocks RFID scanning, so that your badge can only be scanned by devices you want to when you want it to (like door scanners). The best way to protect the information on your PIV Badge is to not wear it outside of Ames Lab. 

If you lose your badge, report this to the Badging Office immediately - we will turn off the badge’s building access remotely so no one can use it to get into Ames Lab facilities. We’ll also start the process to deactivate your PIV Badge, which will wipe all the certificates off of it. Remember: No one can access the private key on your badge without your PIN number, so always keep that information safe. Once a PIV Badge is deactivated, it cannot be reactivated, so you’ll need to get a new PIV Badge. We’ll issue you a temporary badge in the meantime.

No, if you lose your PIV Badge, you won’t be charged to get a new one. Please do let us know if you lose your badge as soon as possible so we can turn off the badge’s door access and wipe its information.

If you have a PIV Badge, then yes, you need to keep it in a badge holder with RFID blocking technology. This protects your card from being scanned when you don’t want it to, which keeps your information safe. You'll receive a federally-approved RFID-blocking badge holder when you come get your PIV Badge. Ames Lab Badges and ISUCards do not need to be kept in RFID-blocking badge holders.

Yes, you can use a PIV Badge to encrypt and decrypt emails when you need to send or receive sensitive information. The digital certificates in your badge help create secure connections so you can send information safely. You’ll use your PIV Badge’s pin number to encrypt or decrypt emails using Outlook. We’ll put together more guidance on how to do this as more people receive their PIV Badges. In the meantime, reach out to IT through the IT General Request form in ServiceNow for directions.

If you forget your PIN, then you will need to make an appointment with the Badging Office to get it reset.  The PIN is used to access the private key embedded with the certificates on the card and is commonly used for email encryption and decryption.

Right now there are no plans to use badges to access computers. This is called “logical” access. If we do need to use badges to access computers in the future, the PIV Badges we are getting will work for that too.

Yes, per DOE Order 473.3 Chapter XI, all Ames Lab and PIV Badges must be returned to the Badging Office (TASF 105) during business hours at the end of an employee's last day of work. We are working with HR to build this step into the checkout process.