Complying with PCI DSS Compliance Regulation

Establishments that process credit card payments and store cardholder data must be PCI DSS compliant, according to the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS). The PCI compliance standards were developed by the PCI Standards Council to secure and protect the payment card ecosystem and apply to service providers and merchants that process transactions through credit or debit card payments.

PCI DSS compliance refers to the operational and technical standards businesses follow to protect and secure credit card data of cardholders, which are transmitted every time there is a credit card transaction.

PCI DSS requirements

Data and information security is the top priority of almost all companies and organizations. Thus, nearly all businesses should be PCI DSS compliant, which focuses on the security and protection of sensitive cardholder information.

It will take time to comply with the rules and meet the compliance requirements. Achieving PCI DSS compliance is not easy, and the standard is difficult to maintain. However, you can ensure that you are on track and meeting the needs systematically and faster by employing PCI DSS compliance automation to take care of evidence collection and repetitive tasks and eliminate legwork and numerous meetings. In addition, automation can provide you with real-time data on your progress and generate accurate reports for auditors.

Businesses must meet all the requirements, which include the following:

1. Install and maintain firewalls and routers configured for cardholder data protection. The rules of the configuration must be reviewed twice a year.
2. Never use default system passwords supplied by vendors. Instead, change the usernames and passwords as soon as you install new devices, applications, and operating systems.
3. Protect the cardholder data you store and know all the information you will keep and their locations (in log files, spreadsheets, databases, etc.), including the data's retention period. Use industry-accepted card data encryption system and encryption key management process for PCI DSS.
4. Install and update anti-virus programs or software to protect your system against malware. In addition, ensure that all devices that your employees use have an active and updated version of the anti-virus program.
5. Define and implement secure systems and applications to help identify and classify security vulnerabilities. Mitigate security threats by the timely deployment of critical patches in the card data environments such as POS terminals, databases, application software, switches, routers, firewalls, and operating systems.
6. Restrict access to cardholder data only to authorized employees. Enhance the restriction by defining the levels of authorized access and monitoring their access.
7. All authorized users should have a unique username and password with good complexity. In addition, ensure that their access to data is monitored and documented, and use a two-factor authorization procedure for remote access.
8. Install electronic access control and video cameras at the physical locations of your data storage to restrict access.
9. Test your security processes and systems regularly to check for vulnerabilities and gaps by conducting scans of wireless access points, external IPs and domains, and internal vulnerabilities. In addition, it is recommended to do application and network penetration tests and file monitoring.
10. Establish a policy addressing information security that all personnel should acknowledge and follow.

Independent qualified security assessors (QSA) certified by the PCI Security Standards Council review all the requirements. Although PCI DSS compliance is challenging, your business will gain more benefits when you are compliant, not to mention that you face severe fines if you fail to comply.