Replies to common email received at pennkey@isc

Below are standard replies that ProDesk provides to the questions most often directed to pennkey@isc.

FOR PEOPLE EXPERIENCING AUTHENTICATION ISSUES WITH THEIR PENNKEY:

Here are some tips to use your PennKey username/password successfully.

Use all lower-case letters for the username. Type the password *exactly* as it was when it was set, keeping case sensitivity in mind. Also, some browsers have an auto-complete "feature" which capitalizes the first letter of anything entered in a web form field. This can interfere with PennKey and password entry, so be sure to turn off this feature if it's on.

In addition, sometimes CAPS LOCK has been "on" when people set their PennKey passwords. Try typing your PennKey username in all lower case, but type your password with all CAPS to see if that works.

To rule out problems with your PennKey, try testing it by visiting the following URL:

http://www.upenn.edu/computing/pennkey/testmypennkey

If you can access the page above after authenticating with your PennKey, then the problem you are having with authentication is related to the service you are attempting to authenticate to and you should contact that service provider directly. Contact information usually appears on those authentication web pages.

If you can't access the test page, you'll need to request another Setup Code to reset your password. In the event that you need to do this, you can take a look at the link below:

http://www.upenn.edu/computing/pennkey/help/admin.html

I hope this information helps.

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FOR NON-PENN AFFILIATES REQUESTING A PENNKEY:

Individuals engaged in legitimate, long-term academic collaboration with faculty or a member of a University Department, can talk to that individual or department to get the process started for sponsorship of a PennKey.

Thank you for your interest in PennKey.

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FOR PENNKEY REQUESTS FOR ACCESS TO LIBRARY RESOURCES:

In addition to requiring PennKey authentication to use Library electronic resources, the Library also employs authorization checks which are based on affiliation and/or a current Library patron record. It is possible that your Library record may have expired.

To test only your PennKey, please try authenticating at the following PennKey test page:

http://www.upenn.edu/computing/pennkey/testmypennkey

If your PennKey works on the above page, but fails the Library pages, you might want to contact the Library to ensure that your patron record is up to date. Please see their web page on use of Library electronic resources and contact information for resolving access issues:

http://www.library.upenn.edu/access/electronic.html

I hope this information helps.

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FOR PEOPLE REQUESTING PENN ASSIGNED SSN (INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS)

I'm sorry for the confusion. Penn assigns temporary 9-digit student ID numbers to international students who don't have a U.S. Social Security Number. That Student ID number is sent under separate cover by the admissions office for your school.

You need to work with your school's admissions office to obtain your 9 digit Penn assigned Social Security Number (Student ID).

General information on locating admissions office contact information is available below:

If you are an undergraduate, you can locate contact information for you specific school at the following URL:
http://www.admissionsug.upenn.edu/

If you are a graduate student, you can locate contact information for your school at the URL that appears below:
http://www.upenn.edu/grad/gradgroups.htm

Once you have that number, you can use your Setup Code and some other biographical data to create your PennKey and PennKey password.

Again, sorry for the confusion and good luck!

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FOR PEOPLE WHO DIDN'T RECEIVE A SETUP CODE DUE TO INCORRECT ADDRESS

Unfortunately, for security reasons, Penn is unable to provide setup code information over telephone, fax, or email. Students need to contact the Registrar's office to verify or correct a current Address of Record in the Student Record System.

http://www.upenn.edu/registrar/

Faculty and Staff should work with their Business Administrator to verify or correct current address information in the Payroll system.

Once you have your address updated, wait 24 hours for the change to propagate to all Penn systems. You will then need to request a new Setup Code letter so that you can register your PennKey and password by calling the 24 hour Automated Setup Code request line to have a new Setup Code sent to your corrected address:

http://www.upenn.edu/computing/pennkey/help/admin.html#6pkey

I hope this information helps.

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FOR INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS NEEDING EXPLANATION OF THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE PENN ID (8 DIGITS) & PENN STUDENT ID (9 DIGITS)

I'm sorry for the confusion. Penn assigns temporary 9-digit student ID numbers to international students who don't have a U.S. Social Security Number (SSN). This number is often referred to as your Student ID or your Penn Student ID.

U.S. Social Security numbers are used by a variety of banking, health, and educational institutions throughout the U.S. to track people and evaluate things such as credit worthiness. As a result, SSNs have become a valuable way for identity thieves to "steal" a person's identity and do things such as open credit cards in that person's name etc.

To protect people's identity, Penn also assigns something called a Penn ID which is the middle 8 numbers of your Penn Card. This 8 digit identifier is something that is unique to Penn and therefore is of little value to someone wishing to steal a person's identity. Penn is currently making a strong effort to eliminate applications that require people to enter their U.S. Social Security Number, and instead ask people for their Penn ID. However, many of our legacy systems still require SSN. Therefore, we still assign temporary, faux SSNs to students who don't have a real U.S. SSN.

You should make an effort to remember both of these numbers and simply remember that the 9-digit number should be used any time you are asked to enter your SSN into a Penn application. The 8 digit number will usually be referred to as your Penn ID and occasionally as your Penn Card ID.

You need to work with your school's admissions office to obtain your 9 digit Penn assigned Social Security Number (Student ID).

General information on locating admissions office contact information is available below:

If you are an undergraduate, you can locate contact information for you specific school at the following URL:
http://www.admissionsug.upenn.edu/

If you are a graduate student, you can locate contact information for your school at the URL that appears below:
http://www.upenn.edu/grad/gradgroups.htm

Once you have that number, you can use your Setup Code and some other biographical data to create your PennKey and PennKey password.

I hope that clarifies things a bit and again, I apologize for the confusion.

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FOR ALUMNI INQUIRING ABOUT GETTING A PENNKEY

Although it may be possible for you to obtain a PennKey, at this time there is no broad effort to offer PennKeys to alumni. In fact, many of Penn's electronic resources require additional authorization or permission for use, which may be contingent upon an active Penn affiliation.

You could attempt to obtain a PennKey Setup Code following standard procedures:
http://www.upenn.edu/computing/pennkey/help/admin.html

Please keep in mind that if mailed, Setup Codes will be sent to your address of record at the University. It is your responsibility to double-check your address on file. One place to start is the Registrar's Office: http://www.upenn.edu/registrar/

I hope this information helps.

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RESETTING A FORGOTTEN PASSWORD / REQUESTING A NEW SETUP CODE

To register or reset your PennKey password, you will need to follow standard procedures and request a new Setup Code letter.

By far, the easiest way to obtain a Setup Code letter is by visiting a PennKey Administration Station if you have access to campus (you will walk away with a Setup Code in hand); if you do not have access to campus you can make a telephone call to the PennKey Setup Code Request Line to have a Setup Code sent to you through the mail:

http://www.upenn.edu/computing/pennkey/help/admin.html

Please keep in mind that if mailed, the Setup Code letter will be produced and sent to your Address of Record:

http://www.upenn.edu/computing/pennkey/help/address.html

Once you have the letter in hand, you'll use the information on the Setup Code letter, along with some other personal information, to reset your PennKey from the PennKey registration website.

Make sure you carefully follow the instructions below to avoid problems while registering your PennKey. Go to the PennKey registration page by selecting either the "register a new PennKey" (for first time setup) or "reset your password" (for resetting a password) link at the following web page: http://www.upenn.edu/computing/pennkey/

Start by entering the 7-digit Setup Code, exactly as was given to you, with case-sensitivity in mind.

Next, enter the last four digits of your Social Security Number in the field provided. Note: NOT your 8-digit Penn ID number, the last four of your 9-digit SSN.

Finally, use the dropdown menus to supply your month and date of birth. Enter your four-digit birth year. Example: 1981, not 81.

Successfully entering this information will allow you to proceed with re-selecting a PennKey password (case-sensitive) to complete the process of registering your PennKey. Also, you'll be reminded of your PennKey username during this process.

I hope this information helps.

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ERROR 402- DATA VERIFICATION OR CORRECTION

The Error 402 message occurs during PennKey registration when one of the following three pieces of information is not entered correctly:

* The 7-character PennKey Setup Code
* The last four digits of your US Social Security Number or Penn-assigned SSN
* Your birthdate

Sometimes in rare situations, Penn has incorrect information about you in their systems, and that data mismatch will result in a PennKey registration error. I suggest double-checking with the Registrar to verify and/or correct this information.

To contact the Registrar, please see:
http://www.upenn.edu/registrar/

If data needs to be corrected, wait 24 hours for this change to propagate through Penn systems. Then try your the PennKey registration application again.

I hope this information helps.

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HOW TO ENTER DATA FOR PENNKEY REGISTRATION

Go to the PennKey registration page by selecting either the "register a new PennKey" (for first time setup) or "reset your password" (for resetting a password) link at the following web page: http://www.upenn.edu/computing/pennkey/

Make sure you carefully follow the instructions below to avoid problems while registering your PennKey.

Start by entering the 7-digit Setup Code, exactly as was given to you, with case-sensitivity in mind.

Next, enter the last four digits of your Social Security Number in the field provided. Note: NOT your 8-digit Penn ID card number, the last four of your 9-digit SSN.

Finally, use the dropdown menus to supply your month and date of birth. Enter your four-digit birth year. Example: 1981, not 81.

Successfully entering this information will allow you to proceed with re-selecting a PennKey password (case-sensitive) to complete the process of registering your PennKey. If resetting your password, you will be reminded of your PennKey username during this process.

I hope this information helps.

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FOR ALUMNI INQUIRING ABOUT TRANSCRIPTS (PRE-AUG 2002 GRADS)

Since you graduated/separated from the University before August 2002, a PennKey is not necessary to access Penn InTouch for transcript requests. Use the alumni link to log into Penn InTouch:
https://sentry.isc.upenn.edu/intouch/alumni

Use the same Student ID number and PAC which you've always used. If you forgot them, you need to contact the Registrar: http://www.upenn.edu/registrar/

Please note that staff at this email address have no acces to the old PAC system; you will need to contact the Registrar directly for assistance with your PAC.

For further information, please see:
https://sentry.isc.upenn.edu/intouch/ngmm0004?ngidpac

I hope this information helps.

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