XTec Secured Federal USAccess Credentialing Contract
The GSA reaffirmed XTec as the prime contractor for the $237.6 million federal credentialing program through 2036.
Updated on Oct. 1, 2026 in Cybersecurity
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The General Services Administration has finalized its selection of XTec to lead the USAccess 2.0 federal credentialing contract. The decision follows the withdrawal of a formal protest by competing firm Peraton, clearing the way for a decade of modernized identity service operations.
Why it matters
The USAccess 2.0 initiative is designed to modernize the aging HSPD-12 infrastructure used to verify the identities of federal employees and contractors across more than 100 agencies. This procurement update ensures a stable trajectory for the identity verification systems currently supporting over 800,000 active credentials.
The system relies on the AuthentX Cloud Platform, which maintains a FedRAMP High impact level certification for security. The architecture processes biometric verification through fingerprint templates, PINs, and biographic data to maintain security across federal facilities.
The players
XTec
A contractor specializing in identity management and secure credentialing technology.
General Services Administration
The federal agency responsible for managing government workplaces, procurement, and infrastructure.
Peraton
A technology provider focused on government systems, cybersecurity, and national security intelligence.
The details
The USAccess program acts as a centralized gatekeeper for federal physical and logical access. To confirm an identity, the system utilizes biometric verification — a security process that matches physical characteristics against stored digital templates — alongside PINs and biographic records. The modernized 2.0 framework integrates these checks through the cloud-based AuthentX platform, which must adhere to the high-security requirements mandated by federal standards for high-impact systems.
Timeline
2022: The program reached a threshold of over 800,000 active cards.
October 2025: GSA initially selected XTec as the prime contractor.
June 29, 2026: Peraton filed a formal protest with the GAO.
September 8, 2026: Peraton withdrew its protest against the award.
June 2036: The contract performance period concludes.
The Tech Race
This project represents a critical update to the infrastructure mandated by Homeland Security Presidential Directive 12. It follows a multi-year effort by the federal government to migrate legacy physical credentialing processes toward modern, cloud-native high-impact security platforms.
Federal employees and contractors using the USAccess system will see modernized identity verification workflows as the program transitions to the 2.0 cloud architecture. While the upgrade happens behind the scenes, it ensures the long-term reliability of the credentials used daily across 105 agencies.
The takeaway
The resolution of this contract protest stabilizes the platform for the next decade of federal credentialing. Stakeholders should monitor GSA procurement notices through 2036 for specific service rollouts or updates to the AuthentX Cloud integration process.
Further reading
For more on how the government manages secure access, visit the Cybersecurity section.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Biometric Update.
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