Are You Ready to Try One Login for All NIH Applications?

You will welcome using the NIH Login, if any of these happened to you recently. You

•	could not remember your userid and passwords for all of the systems you needed to access
•	forgot whether your userid was your last name + first initial, or your first initial + last name
•	got locked out of your system regularly because you tried too many wrong combinations

The NIH Login will make your daily tasks easier. When you log in to one of the NIH Login-protected applications, it’s as if you log in to all of them—assuming you currently have access. Some NIH Login-protected applications that you can access with this one login include the NIH Business System (NBS), NIH Intramural Database (NIDB), nVision, and the NIH Portal. ITAS will be added during December 2003.

In full production since September 1, 2003, NIH Login currently serves more than two thirds of the NIH population across every IC.

How the NIH Login Benefits You

The NIH Login

• is available 24/7

• can be configured to support Web and client-server applications

• requires only one userid and password for entry to all protected applications

• works with any standard browser on Mac or Windows

The NIH Login—coupled with the NIH Portal—provides a useful and convenient way for all agency users to have instant access to NIH enterprise applications, essential data, and user information, as well as specific IC applications. Log in once to the NIH Portal, and navigate from application to application with a click of the mouse or by tapping a key. (See an article on the NIH Portal in this issue.)

NIH Login Increases Security

Security is enhanced because passwords do not have to be constantly reset, which also decreases overall application maintenance costs. Passwords no longer have to be written down so that users can remember them—one of the top three security violations according to the SANS Institute (well known for its computer security training and research).

Additional levels of security—that is, firewalls or application user security tables—can be implemented in a way that is transparent to the end user. According to a leading developer of identity-based security solutions, one of the top ten ways to increase e-business security while reducing costs is to utilize single sign-on software.

In addition, NIH Login will enhance overall system security by enabling applications to take advantage of stronger credentials as they become more commercially available and acceptable (e.g., digital certificates, one-time password tokens, biometrics).

More Information

If you have any questions about NIH Login, NIH Portal, or single sign-on in general, please send e-mail to Terri Sudler at sudler@mail.nih.gov.