Bidx.com® Digital ID Policy: AASHTOWare Project Bids™ Bid component bidding software
Updated November 17, 2022
Infotech®i Digital ID™ iis for use with the AASHTOWare Project Bids™ iii Bid component bidding software to the Bid Express®iv service at www.bidx.com are specific to the individual Subscriber, and not to the agency or agencies to which the Subscriber intends to bid. To bid to an agency, a Subscriber must make a "request to bid" to that agency. The same Digital ID may be used to bid at multiple agencies if all of those agencies have implemented the software, but the Subscriber must make an individual "request to bid" to each agency to which the Subscriber intends to bid via the AASHTOWare Project Bids™ Bid component software. In general, a Subscriber must have been pre-approved to bid as a vendor to an agency before the Subscriber may submit a "request to bid" to that agency.
1. Infotech Digital ID Subscriber Policy
By accepting and using an Infotech Digital ID, you, as a Subscriber or Holder, represent to Infotech and to parties relying on your use of the Digital ID with Infotech products and services that you will:
Not compromise the integrity or security of the Digital ID; for instance: sharing passwords, storing backup copies of keys insecurely, or permitting use of the Digital ID by anyone other than yourself.
Provide accurate and complete information when communicating with Infotech.
Confirm the accuracy of the information associated with the Digital ID before using the Digital ID.
Promptly cease using the Digital ID and notify Infotech if (i) any information that was submitted to Infotech or is included in a Digital ID changes or becomes misleading; or (ii) there is any actual or suspected misuse or compromise of the Private Key associated with the Digital ID.
Use the Digital ID only for authorized and legal purposes, consistent with the Digital ID purpose, these policies, and any other associated policies and agreements.
Promptly cease using the Digital ID and related private key after Digital ID expiration, if any applies.
2. Application and Activation Policies
No Digital ID shall be approved and/or activated except upon completion of any necessary internal and/or external review required by policy. Review by external parties, if necessary or required, is not guaranteed in any way by Infotech. Infotech makes no guarantees whatsoever on any processing times for Digital ID applications or activation requests.
Infotech shall not be responsible for any Digital ID applicant's failure to provide complete and correct application information in the specified manner and format, or failure to submit application information to Infotech’s vendor for identity verification prior to the need of the applicant to use the Digital ID for any purpose, including internet bidding, without sufficient time allotted for all internal and external reviews of the application. Infotech shall not be responsible for any delays or technical difficulties experienced by Subscribers that are a result of circumstances outside of Infotech's control.
Infotech recommends that applicants submit all requests for Digital ID approval and activation not less than seven days in advance of the anticipated need to use the Digital ID. Infotech recommends that Subscribers, once the Subscriber's Digital ID has been activated and approved, test the functionality of the Digital ID well in advance of the need to use the Digital ID, in the event that technical troubleshooting is necessary.
2.1 Application Policies in Detail
An application for a Digital ID for use with the AASHTOWare Project Bids™ Bid component software does not require submission of any original or paper documentation. In order to complete the application process, the Applicant must provide the following information and documentation to Infotech’s third party identity validation service which uses multiple trusted and verified data sources.:
- US RESIDENT: Individual identity shall be verified via a three part verification process.
Part one: the applicant must demonstrate the capability to receive email at the Infotech user account’s email address.
Part two: the applicant must enter personally identifiable information including name, address, date of birth, and the last four digits of their social security number. This information will be used to positively identify the individual.
Part three: the applicant’s verified identity from Part two will be used to generate a knowledge based authentication (KBA) quiz consisting of multiple choice challenge questions.
- NON-US RESIDENT: Individual identity shall be verified via a four part verification process.
Part one: the applicant must demonstrate the capability to receive email at the Infotech user account’s email address.
Part two: the applicant must enter personally identifiable information including name, country, and date of birth.
Part three: the applicant must provide an image of a state or federal government issued identification which includes a photograph of the applicant.
Part four: the applicant must capture an image of their face which will be automatically compared to the applicant’s provided identification in Step three.
2.2 Approval and Activation
All Digital ID applications that meet all criteria for acceptance and are authenticated according to all controls and protocols will be approved and activated. Digital ID applications that do not meet each and every criteria for acceptance or do not pass all controls and protocols will be rejected.
3. Actions Required after Approval and Application
An approved and activated Digital ID for use with the AASHTOWare Project Bids™ Bid component software does not automatically permit the Digital ID to be used for internet bidding purposes. The applicant (hereafter "Subscriber") must make a "request to bid" to any agency to which the Subscriber intends to bid with the Digital ID.
3.1 Request to Bid Procedure
The Subscriber, once the Subscriber's Digital ID for use with the AASHTOWare Project Bids™ Bid component software has been approved and activated, may then request to bid to any agency that has implemented the AASHTOWare Project Bids™ software and has assigned a vendor number (or other identifier required by the specific agency) to the Subscriber. The "request to bid" for any agency that has implemented the AASHTOWare Project Bids™ software may be found by the Subscriber after logging in to the Subscriber's account at www.bidx.com. Once the "request to bid" has been made, the agency to which the request was submitted must approve the request before the Subscriber may use the Digital ID to submit bids electronically via the AASHTOWare Project Bids™ Bid component software. The Subscriber may make a "request to bid" to multiple agencies with the same activated Digital ID.
Note: Infotech does not have any role in the approval process for any "request to bid” submitted to an agency for approval. It is recommended that any "request to bid” to a particular agency be made well in advance of any bid submissions to that agency, for no bids may be submitted to that agency until the "request to bid" has been approved by the agency.
4. Deactivation Policies
Infotech may deactivate any Digital ID at any time and without notice to the Subscriber if Infotech determines, in its sole discretion, that the Digital ID has been compromised; has been used or will be used for fraudulent, deceitful, or otherwise unlawful purposes; or may harm, compromise, or otherwise interfere with the operation of Infotech systems or services, or the systems or services of an Infotech business partner, or any other entity. Infotech may or may not notify the Subscriber of the deactivation via email, telephone, or other means. Infotech shall bear no responsibility to any party resulting from the deactivation of a Digital ID, including circumstances which prevent a Subscriber from bidding electronically, if Infotech has deactivated the Digital ID in good faith and for any of the reasons listed in this paragraph.
4.1 Deactivation by Subscriber
An Infotech Digital ID Subscriber may deactivate their Digital ID at any time and instantly by doing so from the Subscriber's account profile within the Bid Express Service. Once a Digital ID has been deactivated by the Subscriber, there is no way to re-activate that Digital ID, and if the Subscriber wishes to again use the Bid Express Service to bid electronically, the Subscriber must submit a new registration form according to the process indicated above. A Subscriber may under no circumstances deactivate a Digital ID by e-mail or telephone notice to Infotech. A former Subscriber to the Bid Express Service at www.bidx.com that no longer has access to the Subscriber's account may not deactivate a Digital ID associated with that account, but may cancel any recurring billing that is charged to the former Subscriber. For assistance with this specific scenario, please contact Customer Support during normal business hours.
4.2 Digital ID Deactivation by someone other than the Subscriber
A representative of the organization associated with a Digital ID may deactivate the Digital ID of any member of that organization. This may be done directly within the representative's profile within the Bid Express Service at www.bidx.com. If the representative does not have a user account at www.bidx.com, that representative should contact Customer Support during normal business hours for assistance with this procedure. Additional documentation may be required, at Infotech's sole discretion.
5. Bidx.com Subscription Account Cancellation
Please note that cancellation of all Bid Express subscription services for the Bid Express Service at www.bidx.com will also deactivate any Digital ID for use with the AASHTOWare Project Bids™ Bid component software associated with those subscription services. If a former Subscriber re-subscribes to the same service(s) in the future, the Subscriber may not reactivate any Digital IDs that have been deactivated, and instead must apply for a new Digital ID for use with the AASHTOWare Project Bids™ Bid component software, which must be approved and activated before the Subscriber can submit a "request to bid" to any agency that has implemented the AASHTOWare Project Bids™ software.
Infotech shall not refund subscriber fees associated with Digital ID application, activation, use, or subscription services in the event of a Digital ID deactivation.
6. Definitions
AASHTOWare Project Bids™ software: vendors bidding electronically to proposals posted by an agency on the Bid Express Service at www.bidx.com must use the AASHTOWare Project Bids™ Bid component software to encrypt, digitally sign, and submit bids.
AASHTOWare Project Bids™ Bid component software: bidding software used by vendors to encrypt, digitally sign, and submit bids to agencies that use the AASHTOWare Project Bids™ software.
Activated (Digital ID): an activated Digital ID is a Digital ID that has been approved for use after the application, verification, and approval process (or the registration, processing, and approval process). A Digital ID cannot be used in any way until it has been activated by Infotech.
Agency: for the purposes of this policy, an agency is any party that accepts bids electronically via the Bid Express Service(s) or that manages contracts via the Doc Express Service (not as a vendor or contractor).
Applicant: an applicant is someone that has applied for or registered a Digital ID.
Approved (Digital ID): an approved Digital ID is a Digital ID that meets all application or registration requirements.
Bid Express Service (Infotech Bid Express Service): web-based service, located at www.bidx.com, used by agencies to advertise proposals and to receive bids electronically from vendors. The Bid Express Service submits bids to the agency indirectly (via additional bidding software (the AASHTOWare Project Bids™ Bid component software).
Deactivate or Deactivated (Digital ID): a deactivated Digital ID is a Digital ID which was formerly activated, but can no longer be used. A Digital ID may be deactivated by policy. Once deactivated, a Digital ID may never be re-activated, and can only be replaced by a new Digital ID.
Digital ID (Infotech Digital ID): electronic credentials used for encryption, digital signatures, and/or bid submission by users of or subscribers to Infotech services, such as the Doc Express or Bid Express Services.
Request to Bid: a request to bid is a request made by a vendor for an agency to pre-accept the use of a Digital ID that has been approved and activated by Infotech for use with the AASHTOWare Project Bids™ Bid component software. When an agency uses the AASHTOWare Project Bids™ software, a request to bid must be approved by the agency before the Digital ID associated with that request may be used to encrypt, digitally sign, and submit bids to that agency.
Proposal: for the purposes of this policy, a proposal is any item posted by an agency to the Bid Express Service(s) for which the agency is soliciting responses from vendors. Proposals also include "solicitations," "RFPs," "RFIs," and the like.
Subscriber (Digital ID): for the purposes of this policy, a Subscriber is someone who has been issued an Infotech Digital ID for use in conjunction with the AASHTOWare Project Bids™ Bid component software.
Vendor: for the purposes of this policy, a vendor is a party that has an approved business relationship with an agency. A "bidder" or "contractor" (except a "contractor" acting as an agent of an agency) is a vendor for the purposes of this policy.
7. Archives
iInfotech is a registered trademark of Info Tech, Inc.
iiDigital ID is a trademark of Infotech, Inc.
iiiAASHTOWare Project Bids™ is a trademark of AASHTO
ivBid Express is a registered trademark of Info Tech, Inc.
