An Overview Of Credit Card Processing
Part V: What Is PCI Compliance
PCI stands for Payment Card Industry and PCI Compliance refers to a new standard put in place by those at the helm of the card companies. The goal is to ensure the protection of personal, sensitive information during payment transactions and is fast becoming mandatory for businesses that process sales. In fact, at the time of this writing, all but small businesses are required to comply and it is anticipated that even they will have to in the near future.
Most merchants are required to submit their sites to quarterly scans, conducted by scan vendors, and to give themselves annual self-assessments. They are also required to stay on top of their site security, maintaining firewalls and anti-virus software, restrict access to cardholder info, test site networks and more.
The benefits are obvious: your customer’s personal information will have an extra layer of protection and it will build consumer trust in your brand, which is helped along by the seals you can display on your website stating your site is compliant. A common consequence for businesses that have ignored this standard has been for various credit card companies to deny the processing of their cards altogether, meaning limited sales transactions and customers who use those cards going elsewhere to shop.
PCI is beyond the scope of this tutorial, we recommend seeking professional advice. For more information on this new criteria and how it affects your business, visit the PCI Compliance website.
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