Access Certificates for Electronic Services (ACES) facilitates secure electronic access to government information and services using public key infrastructure/digital signature technology.  ACES provides the speed and immediacy of electronic transactions while protecting business-critical information from interception, tampering, and unauthorized access.

ACES, through the use of Public Key Infrastructure (PKI), protects information assets in many different ways:

• Authentication - Validates the identity of each part in an electronic transaction.
• Access Control - Replaces easily guessed and frequently lost user IDs and passwords to streamline log-in security.
• Data Integrity - Ensures that the message or document has not been changed or corrupted during electronic transfer.
• Technical Non-repudiation - Validates the users' identity, making it nearly impossible to later deny a digitally "signed" transaction.
• Confidentially - Protects information from interception during electronic transmission.

Other PKI Services

All other PKI Services are task-based and are competed among the ACES industry partners.  Agencies should submit requirements in the form of a Statement of Work along with a funds obligating document to GSA.

The benefits of ACES

• Provides government agencies with the capability to authenticate electronic digital signature services utilizing secure e-commerce
• Ensures the privacy of electronic transactions
• Validates identity
• Protects integrity of information
• Simplifies process of data exchange
• Facilitates public access to government services and information
• Affords the capability to provide more personalized services
• Accept various kinds of document filings electronically
• Enables secure communication with employees in other locations
• Provides for exchange of confidential data
• Reduces government operating costs through the implementation of electronic business processes
• GSA provides the Certificate Arbitrator Module (CAM), a tool for easing PKI integration
• Provides a governmentwide PKI
• Provides auxiliary services that participating agencies may need to use the PKI
• Ensures agency retains control
• Reduces costs by combining government requirements
• Provides all PKI support services

Any agency authorized to use a Governmentwide Acquisition Contract (GWAC) can use the ACES contract. The ACES contract has the following attributes:

• Indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) GWAC
• Base period of three years with one three year option (September 1999 - September 2005)
• Ceiling of $600 million
• Performance based, multiple award schedule contract
• Requirements are task order competed for best value award
• Firm fixed price and time and materials task orders
• No-cost, no-obligation proposals
• No minimum order amount

ACES Infrastructure

Agencies wishing to participate in the ACES Infrastructure must enter into a "Relying Party Agreement" with GSA.  In return, GSA will provide the CAM to the agency for integration into the agency application.


Delegated Procurement Authority

GSA has made Delegated Procurement Authority (DPA) for ACES available to interested agencies. The DPA enables agencies to order directly off the ACES contract. DPA's are available for Contract Line Items two through 15 under the ACES Contract. 

In order to participate, contact the ACES Contracting Officer and provide names of the designated contracting officers and copies of their warrants.  Once this information is received, the DPA will normally be issued within 24 hours. 

ACES is available to federal and non-federal entities that want to do business with the federal government.