Following PCI DSS compliance requirements may seem like another unnecessary hoop that businesses have to jump through to keep the issuers and payment processing companies happy — but it doesn’t have to be that way.
Sure, it’s easy to think of the terms “compliance” and “regulation” as something that’s only going to cost your business time and money, but when it comes to PCI DSS compliance, Payline is here to show you a better way of thinking.
Being PCI Compliant is a requirement for any company that accepts credit card payments, so you don’t have much of a choice. But that’s not to say it isn’t in your best interest. In fact, following PCI DSS compliance requirements benefits your business’s front and back-end systems, your relationship with your issuers/issuing banks and even with your customers.
Adhering to PCI DSS Compliance Requirements Can Be Painless
Let’s first start with the steps to achieving PCI DSS compliance. You must first determine what level you fall under in terms of how many transactions you process with each credit card brand. For businesses that aren’t sure, don’t fret — you’re acquiring bank has this information needed to help verify your level.
For businesses to be PCI DSS compliant, each card issuer has its own criteria for assigning a merchant level and validation compliance classification level for a merchant, third party or service provider.
Next, based on what type of business or merchant you are — and what types of payments you accept (in-store, online, mobile, third-party processing, type of payment terminal, etc.), you must work with your acquiring bank to determine what materials are needed to prove PCI DSS compliance. For full requirements about determining your level, click here and our Payline support team can help.
While this may sound complicated, our team at Payline is ready with the right payments solutions and tools to ensure your journey to achieving PCI DSS compliance isn’t so complex — and that you’re asking the right questions along the way.
We often hear questions like: Do I really have to complete all the steps as a business owner? OR Is this just a gimmick for card processing companies to charge me money? That’s why we’re here to bust some PCI DSS compliance myths, and reassure you that the process can be made easier with the right partner by your side (that offers PCI-Compliant products). We can also help you understand why you should want to be compliant for both the sake of your business — and your customers.
Teaming Up: Making PCI DSS Compliance Easier
The simple answer to that first question above is no — you don’t have to complete all the steps alone. For small businesses evaluating how to start achieving PCI DSS Compliance, you must take a free online SAQ (Self-Assessment Questionnaire) where your business will receive a PCI certificate and updated regulation information to ensure you are following the guidelines. But don’t worry — Payline can help navigate through that process.
For larger businesses, the best place to start is with a Payline representative who can discuss which compliance solution best fits your business model. Regardless of the size of your company — or processing needs — Payline has a team in place to guide you through each step of the way. We’re also is equipped with solutions and products that are PCI compliant, so you’re covered from the very start.
Besides following PCI DSS Compliance to avoid fines, your business will have a better, more secure network, be able to protect cardholder data (your profits), detect where there may be vulnerabilities in the system and regularly test and monitor how and where credit card data is passing through your payments processing system.
That doesn’t sound like a gimmick to us. Instead, PCI DSS Compliance is about protecting the money your business manages — not tricking you into paying more money to your payments processor.
In the end, what PCI DSS Compliance comes down to is protecting your business’s profits, your customers’ data and your relationships with your payments processing companies — none of which you should be willing to jeopardize.
Anna Lothson is a content contributor for Payline Data. She previously wrote for PYMNTS.com, as a Sr. Content Producer, where she focused on financial services and payments innovation, fraud and security, emerging payments, and FinTech news, research and thought-leadership content across the payments industry.
