pci dss compliance, assessment and certification service

PCI DSS COMPLIANCE CERTIFICATION

Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard

Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard

As a Qualified Security Assessor (QSA) company registered with PCI DSS Standards Security Council (SSC) and empaneled by CERT-In, we facilitate end to end PCI audits, certification and training for organisation to become PCI DSS compliant.

 

About Payment Card Industry (PCI) Data Security Standards - PCI DSS Certification

 

To ensure payment card information is not compromised and provide all parties involved with the best possible protection against data misuse, credit card schemes have introduced a safety standard for the handling of payment card and transaction information. This standard, known as Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard or PCI DSS, applies equally to banks (issuers and acquirers), payment service providers, hosting providers, merchants, and payment application providers. Compliance with these PCI DSS standards is verified at regular intervals. Parties who cannot furnish proof of PCI DSS certification are not permitted to process payment card information.

 

We offer comprehensive advice, preparation, auditing, and verification of your security measures, thereby supporting you in all requirements for PCI DSS certification. If you meet the PCI DSS standards, as an accredited certification body we can supply you with the TÜV SÜD certification mark and all evidence required by the credit-card schemes.

 

What is PCI DSS?

 

The Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) is a collection of security guidelines meant to ensure that ALL businesses that accept, process, store, or transmit any type of payment card data (credit, debit, prepaid, gift cards – which are sponsored by one of the card brands, namely VISA, MasterCard, Rupay, Amex, JCB, Discover, etc), do so securely.

 

These card brands such as Visa, MasterCard, Discover Financial Services, JCB International, and American Express formed the Payments Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) in 2004. PCI compliance framework secures all card transactions from data theft and fraud.

PCI compliance is required for all businesses that are exposed to payment card information for securing the entire payment eco-system. Safeguarding the payment data, helps these companies build long-lasting relations with customers.

 

What is PCI certification?

 

The PCI standards define technical and organizational requirements for the storage, processing, and transfer of cardholder information. These standards apply to all parties involved in payment-card processing. The PCI standard also applies to organizations involved in the operation or provision of infrastructure, data centers, and other security-relevant components. For PCI conformity, organizations must fulfill certain criteria and thus provide appropriate evidence. 

Benefits of PCI DSS Certification

 

Today, massive data breaches take place daily, deeming no company or individual safe.  Any business that accepts card payments must comply with the PCI DSS. The standard frameworks works on several trading levels, which vary in transactions processed per year and have diverse reporting requirements. The benefits of PCI DSS Compliance are:

  1. Mitigate or eliminate data security related risks and threats and protect customers from credit card frauds and financial losses
  2. Achieve higher customer confidence, better brand value, and competitive advantage
  3. Avoid the high costs associated with data breaches and financial frauds
  4. Avoid any penalties levied by banks and other legal bodies for not having PCI DSS compliance
  5. Create a baseline for compliance with other regulations

PCI DSS CERTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS AT A GLANCE

PCI certification requirements are laid down in astandard comprising 12 clauses. To establish a relationship of mutual trust with customers and merchants, all these requirements must be observed and verified at regular intervals. The individual PCI requirements are:

  • Installation and maintenance of a firewall configuration to protect cardholder data
  • No vendor-supplied defaults for system passwords and other security parameters may be used
  • Stored cardholder data must be protected
  • Cardholder data and other sensitive information must be encrypted for transmission across open, public networks
  • Antivirus programs must be used and regularly updated
  • Secure systems and applications must be developed and maintained
  • Access to cardholder data must be restricted according to the need-to-know principle
  • All individuals with computer access must be assigned clear user authentication
  • Physical access to cardholder data must be restricted
  • Comprehensive tracking and monitoring of all access to cardholder data and network resources
  • System and process security must be regularly tested

TÜV SÜD Services: PCI certification and compliance

 

To ensure that you conform to the PCI standard and benefit from the highest security measures, we offer the necessary PCI DSS compliance certification and several additional benefits. The services include: 

  • Scoping and Gap Analysis
  • Technical advisory for all issues and steps of PCI DSS compliance standards.
  • Seminars, training and workshops
  • On-site PCI QSA services and audits carried out by a qualified security assessor (QSA)
  • Vulnerability scans performed by an approved scanning vendor (ASV)
  • Awareness training (eLearning, classroom training)
  • Penetration Testing
  • Support with completing the PCI Certification Self-Assessment Questionnaire (SAQ)
  • PCI DSS ROC / AOC /COC – Report of Compliance , Attestation of Compliance , Certificate of Compliance
  • TÜV SÜD certification mark for certified organizations

PCI DSS Certification Process

 

The PCI compliance process at TÜV SÜD involves the following steps –

  1. Feasibility study at your organisation.
  2. Policy and governance assessment.
  3. Segmentation of pain points.
  4. Establishing the scope of assessment.
  5. Support for Implementation of controls.
  6. Pre-assessment of the processes and technologies.
  7. Completing the PCI DSS certification process.
  8. Technical Testing – VAPT 

Why choose TÜV SÜD for PCI DSS Compliance & Certification?

 

In an effort to improve payment card data security, the PCI Security Standards Council (SSC) delivers wide-ranging standards and support resources to aid organisations to guarantee the security of cardholder data at all times.

The PCI DSS compliance service is the basis. It provides the required framework for developing a comprehensive ecosystem of payment card data security process that incorporates the prevention, detection, and response to security incidents.

TÜV SÜD offers PCI QSA services that cover all PCI DSS mandatory requirements . We support you on your way to PCI DSS certification. With our expertise in auditing information security and our experience in the payment card industry, we guarantee security in card-based payments. Our PCI DSS compliance services help you implement effective security systems.

Our references in the finance and payment industry, among banks, commerce, and e-commerce, showcase our extensive experience in payment security.

The PCI DSS standard supports all organisations that process payment cards, helping them to comply with the relevant PCI DSS requirements.

Our accreditations with the PCI Council

Our accreditations with the PCI Security Standards Council and the payment card schemes authorize us to assist you with all aspects of reaching PCI certification and to issue the PCI certificate.

 

HEAR FROM OUR CUSTOMER

 

“Since 2022, Ayoconnect has been working with TÜV SÜD for our PCI DSS certification, and it has been a truly rewarding experience. We are grateful for the expertise and support they have provided, which has been instrumental in helping us implement better security control during the assessment. 

As a fintech company in Indonesia, this certification has helped us tremendously in safeguarding and improving our information system security, which allows us to provide a better service to our users. We hope to continue this cooperation in the future.”

 

Jason Ong

IT Compliance Associate, Ayoconnect

 

Frequently Asked Questions 

 

  • What happens if you are not PCI DSS compliant?

    If your payment system does not have PCI DSS compliance, your business could become vulnerable to data breaches and frauds.

    The penalty from payment processors for PCI DSS non-compliance could be between $10 and $1000 per month. This shows as a ‘PCI non-compliance fee’ in the statement.

  • What is a PCI violation?

    The term violation applies to state laws. PCI DSS certification is not mandated by law but is a set of standards agreed upon by payment card brands with banks and payment processors. This makes it an issue of non-compliance rather than a violation.

    Here are some of the scenarios that indicate non-compliance –

    • Payment card information is left in public, such as on a desk or computer screen.
    • Paper forms with payment card information are stored in cabinets without locks.
    • The usernames and passwords of systems holding payment data are not secure enough.
    • Point-of-sale (PoS) system is connected to and communicates with other devices.
  • What data falls under PCI compliance?

    The PCI DSS compliance includes all the data of your customer Payment cards including debit cards, credit cards & prepaid cards. It ensures that the customers get adequate data protection by securely processing, storing, and transmitting the card data.

  • Is PCI compliance mandatory?

    PCI DSS certification is mandatory for merchants, service providers, financial institutions & banks etc. who are in the business of storing, processing or transmitting card data of their customers. It provides your organisation with the trust to securely execute online card transactions and build trust among your customers.

  • How long does it take to get PCI compliance?

    The process of becoming PCI DSS compliant takes anywhere between 2-weeks to 8 weeks depending upon the size and nature of the organization.

     

  • How often are PCI audits required?

    For all businesses which require to comply with PCI DSS, it is mandatory to undergo a PCI DSS compliance audit at least once a year.

     

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