DOD to require documentation for lost, stolen ID cards
Department will soon make mandatory what has been an optional policy for replacing Common Access Cards.
By early April, military and civilian employees looking to replace a lost or stolen Common Access Card will have to show supporting documentation, either from their agency or a police report.
Sam Yousef, a program manager at the Defense Human Resources Activity, said the policy, which had been optional, will be in place by late March or early April. “If you have your card lost or stolen, you should work with your local security office or the individual sponsoring you for that ID card,” he said in an interview with American Forces Press Service and the Pentagon Channel.
Anyone who needs a replacement card will have to produce a signed document with the agency or component letterhead. If the card has been stolen and the theft reported to police, a copy of the police report also will do.
The Defense Department has several million CACs in circulation, used by military personnel, civilian employees and some contractors as second-factor authentication for access to DOD networks, systems, buildings and controlled spaces.
Although documentation for replacing cards has been part of DOD’s policy, it has not been required at locations that issue the cards. When the mandatory policy takes effect, the documentation will be scanned and stored in the Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System, Yousef said.
The policy is both an extra security step and a precaution against personnel being somewhat cavalier with how they treat their cards.
“It creates better awareness with our local security offices [and] our individuals that are sponsoring our contractors for common access cards,” Yousef said. “So this way, they have full oversight if someone is losing multiple ID cards.”