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Deadline extended for Department of Education mandatory software upgrade
February 18, 2021
Postsecondary institutions accessing federal Department of Education websites have been given a little more time to install a mandatory software upgrade.
In a February 12 Electronic Announcement, the Department of Education said they are allowing users additional time to complete this required software upgrade and are extending the deadline to upgrade from April 17, 2021 to June 5, 2021.
Last fall, the Department announced the Student Aid Internet Gateway (SAIG) was being updated to comply with federal mandate Binding Operational Directive (BOD) 18-01 to improve email and web security. According to the Department, BOD-18-01 includes a requirement that all publicly accessible federal websites and web services support Transport Layer Security (TLS) version 1.2 or higher. TLS is an Internet protocol that ensures privacy between applications and users.
In the Announcement, the Department said to comply with this federal mandate, a new version of SAIG software—TDClient or EDconnect—that supports TLS 1.2 must be installed by all users, and to avoid losing access to the SAIG, all users must complete their upgrades by June 5 to TDClient 3.3.1 or higher, or to EDconnect 8.5:
- The updated TDClient software is available now on the Software and Other Tools page of the Information for Financial Aid Professionals (IFAP) website (ifap.ed.gov/software-and-other-tools), along with updated user documentation.
- EDconnect 8.5 will be available for download by late April 2021. In prior communications the Department indicated EDconnect 8.5 would be available by late February; however, the Department recently modified the software delivery schedule and advised institutions to monitor the IFAP website for an announcement of the software's availability.
Institutions with questions about the TDClient or EDconnect software should contact CPS/SAIG Technical Support at 1-800-330-5947 or by email at CPSSAIG@ed.gov.