Request Access to Missionary's Student Account

 A Missionary Privacy Release (MPR) is a form that authorizes members of the IT department to assist close family members in gaining access to the missionary's student account, only if the requirements are met and the form has been approved.
 
Due to Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), it's unlawful for educational institutions to provide any information regarding a student's account including username, password or any other forms of digital authentication. BYU-Idaho works diligently to conform to these Federal laws and to protect the privacy and security of all accounts. FERPA laws extend to anyone wishing to obtain access to a student's account by using the account holder's username, password, and/or 2-factor authentication.
 
In some rare instances, close relatives (such as a parent, sibling, etc.) may request an exception, which may grant them access to the student's account. In those cases, BYU-Idaho has authorized the IT department to issue Missionary Privacy Release (MPR) forms, which if approved, legally authorize members of the IT department to assist family members in gaining access to the missionary's account while they're serving.
 
Generally, however, an MPR is not needed. The student can share account information with whoever they wish, including their parents. If given a child's credentials, the parents can use them to log into their account while the student is not able to themselves. For updates like a two-factor authentication number, the student should contact IT.
 
It's important to note that an MPR and a Privacy Release form are different. A Privacy Release form only consents the release of educational records and not access to a person's account. If a missionary has signed a Privacy Release form prior to their mission, the IT department will not be able to assist anyone with gaining access to the missionary's account.

The sole purpose of an MPR is for family members to help with things like financial aid, course registration, and other tasks that the missionary can’t handle while on a mission.

Required criteria:

  1. There are actions the missionary cannot do for themselves (no access to the internet or no mission president approval)
  2. These actions require access to the missionary’s BYUI account
  3. These actions must be done before (not after) the missionary returns home from their mission (i.e., the missionary does not have a reasonable amount of time before returning home in order to meet certain deadlines for admission)
    • Examples:
      • Needing access to their student’s email address e.g., signing up for a housing contract, etc. that requires a BYUI email address
      • Needing to order a transcript
      • Registering if the student is coming home too close to the semester start date

The approval process:

  1. Contact the IT Service Desk
    • A team member from the IT Service Desk will assist you in requesting access to your missionary's account. In the process, they will help determine if the above criteria are met and if it's appropriate to release the missionary's login credentials. 
    • The family member seeking approval should ensure the missionary is aware of the request
  2. The IT department will email the missionary directly at their provided missionary email to seek approval and authorization to release their username, password, 2FA information
    • The family member should instruct the missionary to complete, sign, and email the completed MPR to the email: privacyrelease@byui.edu (the IT department will also be providing this to the missionary via email)
    • The mission office can assist in this process if the missionary does not have access to their email. 
  3. The missionary will be required to complete the Missionary Privacy Release form (the IT department will provide the documentation required to the missionary) and send it to: privacyrelease@byui.edu
  4. Once the form has been completed, signed, and received at the privacyrelease@byui.edu email, the IT department will be notified and begin processing the request. The family will be notified soon after and an IT Service Desk employee will assist the listed/approved person with logging into the missionary's account. This typically requires:
    1. Providing the username
    2. Providing a password reset
    3. Assisting with 2-factor authentication

Once these steps are completed, the family member(s) listed on the MPR may request additional support in the future, if they somehow get locked out of the account. The MPR will remain on the student’s record for future access needs. If the missionary would like the MPR removed from their record while on their mission, the missionary should immediately contact the University to have it removed.

 Please note: that the MPR will be legally invalid once the missionary returns from service at which point the missionary can resume their own educational planning. 

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