You may be familiar with the term “PCI Compliance.”
In the electronic payment industry, this is currently a very important issue. In the past few years there have been instances where merchants’ systems have been breached and sensitive credit card and personal information has been stolen. In response to these actions, American Express, Discover Financial Services, JCB, MasterCard™ Worldwide and Visa™ International joined to form an independent council to manage the ongoing evolution of the Payment Card Industry
(PCI) Data Security Standard. This Standard focuses on improving payment account security throughout the transaction process. The ultimate benefit will be that more than a billion global payment card users receive a higher level of security against data theft and fraud.
Many companies are charging you fees for PCI compliance or claiming that your terminal is not compliant. Many times this is not true and is simply a way to generate more revenue. IPS does not agree with this practice. We believe most merchants should be able to prove compliance without incurring additional expense. Keep in mind, if you are processing cards through a terminal and a phone line, do not retain your customers’ credit card numbers in a computer and are not transacting business over the internet, you will most likely be able to prove compliance by completing a simple self-assessment questionnaire annually. The PCI Security Council has created a website where this questionnaire is available to you AT NO COST.
If you are transmitting or receiving credit card numbers over the internet, or storing them electronically, you must have your network scanned on a quarterly basis by a PCI Security Council approved scanning vendor (ASV). The cost for this service varies depending on the vendor and processing bank. At International Payment Solutions, merchants who need this scanning service will have an annual cost of $80.
Remember, PCI compliance is not an option, but a requirement. Failure to comply with these regulations could result in the inability to take credit cards from your customers.
If your processing company is charging you for unnecessary compliance fees, if they are trying to get you to replace your terminals, what else are they doing? There have been recent increases imposed by Visa™ and MasterCard™ that are legitimate but are being inflated by some companies to increase profitability. How much have YOUR rates increased?
To learn more about PCI compliance and to receive a free, no obligation analysis of your current credit card processing rates, please call us at 866-522-1169 or fax your statement to 815-273-2133. International Payment Solutions is a registered ISO/MSP of Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., Walnut Creek, CA.
