USNA Google Apps for Government (e.g., Gmail), Blackboard, SSL VPN & Other Web Applications - Solution for Access Problems
A number of users are experiencing problems when attempting to access USNA Google Apps for Government (e.g., Gmail), Blackboard, or the USNA Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) Virtual Private Network (VPN). These problems appear to be caused by the security certificates used by these websites. The solution to this issue is the installation of the Department of Defense (DoD) Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) Root Certificates
DoD PKI Root Certificates allow your web browsers to trust the identity of websites whose secure communications are authenticated by the Department of Defense. These are not required to access DoD sites; however, they will help you avoid Security Alert windows when you go to DoD agency websites that require secure communication (e.g., have https:// at the beginning of the web address). Download the appropriate version of InstallRoot from the Information Assurance Support Environment (IASE) PKI and PKE Tools page (under the Trust Store tab). Please note that there are separate versions depending on whether you use a 32-bit or 64-bit Windows operating system. If you don't have administrative rights on your Windows computer use the Non-Admin version. They also have a Linux version and self-extracting zip files.
- Download root certificate installation program.
- Run the downloaded installation program.
- Exit and restart browser.
After installation, the certificates should allow continued communication with USNA's web sites including USNA Google Apps for Government (e.g., Gmail), Blackboard and the SSL VPN. If you have any additional problems, please contact the Information Technology Service Center (ITSC) at [email protected] or 410-293-3500.
