R 130945Z AUG 01 ZYW
FM CMC WASHINGTON DC//C4//
TO MARADMIN
INFO DON CIO WASHINGTON DC//CIO//
DMDC WASHINGTON DC//00//
BT
UNCLAS //N01545//
MARADMIN 362/01
MSGID/GENADMIN/CMC WASHINGTON DC/C4/CP//
SUBJ/COMMON ACCESS CARD (CAC) STATUS//
REF/A/ASECDEF MRM DOD CAC/16JAN01//
REF/B/ASECDEF MRM DOD PKI/12AUG00//
RMKS/1. PURPOSE. TO ANNOUNCE SUSPENSION OF COMMON ACCESS CARD (CAC)
ISSUANCE TO MARINE CORPS PERSONNEL. THIS IS A COORDINATED M&RA/C4
MESSAGE.
2. BACKGROUND. THE CAC REPRESENTS THE FIRST DOD-WIDE IMPLEMENTATION
OF SMART CARD TECHNOLOGY DESIGNED TO IMPROVE AND ENHANCE OPERATIONS
AND BUSINESS PROCESSES. IAW REF A, THE CAC WILL BE ISSUED TO ALL
ACTIVE DUTY MILITARY PERSONNEL, SELECTED RESERVES, DOD CIVILIANS,
AND ELIGIBLE CONTRACTORS. IT WILL REPLACE THE EXISTING GENEVA
CONVENTION MILITARY ID CARD, FUNCTION AS A COMBINED BUILDING ACCESS
BADGE, AND SERVE AS A TOKEN CARRIER FOR PUBLIC KEY INFRASTRUCTURE
(PKI) DIGITAL CERTIFICATES (REF B). THE COMBINATION OF PKI AND CAC
WILL GREATLY IMPROVE NETWORK AND APPLICATION SECURITY BY PROVIDING
AUTHENTICATION, DATA INTEGRITY, CONFIDENTIALITY, NON-REPUDIATION,
AND ACCESS CONTROL. THE NAVY-MARINE CORPS INTRANET (NMCI) WILL
CAPITALIZE ON CAC AND PKI TECHNOLOGY TO SUPPORT STRONG
AUTHENTICATION FOR NETWORK LOGON.
3. IMPLEMENTATION. THE CAC WILL BE ISSUED AND MAINTAINED BY THE
DEERS/RAPIDS INFRASTRUCTURE. WORKSTATIONS ON QUANTICO AND CAMP
LEJEUNE HAVE BEEN UPGRADED TO SUPPORT CAC ISSUANCE AND SEVERAL OTHER
MARINE CORPS LOCATIONS ARE SCHEDULED TO BE UPGRADED THIS CY.
DESPITE THE AGGRESSIVE IMPLEMENTATION SCHEDULE, THE SYSTEM IS STILL
UNDERGOING BETA TESTING AND THE ISSUANCE PROCESS REMAINS IMMATURE.
RELIABLE CONNECTIVITY TO THE DOD PKI IS ESSENTIAL TO ENSURE THE CAC
WITH PKI CERTIFICATES CAN BE CONSISTENTLY ISSUED IN 15 MINUTES OR
LESS.
4. POLICY. CAC ISSUANCE TO MARINE CORPS PERSONNEL IS HENCEFORTH
SUSPENDED FOR UP TO 7 MONTHS. THIS DECISION IS BASED ON THE
FOLLOWING CONCERNS: 1) UNRELIABILITY OF THE ISSUANCE PROCESS TO
INCLUDE EXCESSIVE ISSUANCE TIMES, 2) FORTHCOMING MODIFICATIONS TO
EMAIL SIGNATURE CERTIFICATES PLACED ON THE CAC, 3) CURRENT BETA
STATUS OF SYSTEM, 4) POTENTIAL PROGRAM DELAYS RESULTING FROM
SECURITY EVALUATIONS AND IMMATURITY OF SYSTEM SOFTWARE, 5)
COMPLEXITIES OF LINKING NMCI WITH CAC AND PKI DURING INITIAL
IMPLEMENTATIONS. ISSUANCE MAY RESUME ONCE THE FOLLOWING OBJECTIVES
ARE ACHIEVED: 1) SYSTEM IS TRANSITIONED FROM BETA TO PRODUCTION, 2)
MODIFICATIONS TO EMAIL SIGNATURE CERTIFICATES ARE IMPLEMENTED, AND
3) A CONSISTENT ISSUANCE TIME OF 15 MINUTES OR LESS IS ACHIEVED.
5. SCHEDULED EQUIPMENT PLACEMENT AND UPGRADES MAY CONTINUE AT USMC
DEERS/RAPIDS SITES, HOWEVER, FOLLOWING THE UPGRADES FOR CAC
ISSUANCE, THE WORKSTATIONS WILL BE CONVERTED BACK TO ISSUE THE
TRADITIONAL (TESLIN) ID CARD FOR ACTIVE DUTY MEMBERS. THE MARINE
CORPS WILL CONTINUE TO WORK CLOSELY WITH THE APPROPRIATE DOD
AGENCIES AND DON CIO TO FACILITATE THE DEVELOPMENT AND
IMPLEMENTATION OF CAC, PKI AND NMCI.
5. POC AT C4 IS MAJ MORRIS, DSN 223-3491, COM 703-693-3491, EMAIL:
MORRISDE@HQMC.USMC.MIL. POC AT M&RA IS MS. MARY STROZ, DSN
278-9529, COM 703-784-9529, EMAIL: STROZM@MANPOWER.USMC.MIL.//
BT