Merchant Accounts and Credit Card Processing

Is My Small Business Exempt from the New PCI and PA-DSS Compliance Requirements?

The long-anticipated PCI and PA-DSS Compliance Regulations are finally coming full circle.  By July 1, 2010, every payment processing application must be in compliance with these new laws.  No one is exempt and in fact, those who fail to meet the rapidly approaching deadline risk losing a lot:

• Those businesses not in compliance by the July 1, 2010 deadline (regardless of their size and those that incorporate point of sale systems and/or credit card processing systems) risk the forced closing of their business.  Audits are always a possibility and those companies not in compliance stand a very real possibility of having their doors closed.
• If someone hacks into a network made vulnerable by non-compliance by the business owner, he or she could be responsible for reimbursements and any other costs associated with the stolen data.
• Waiting until the last minute could result in delays, since it’s anticipated many business owners could delay the transition.  This only highlights the importance of ensuring your company is in compliance before the deadline.

The ability to accept debit and credit cards as well as electronic check payments is crucial to the vast majority of American businesses.  These new regulations will ensure no sensitive information is maintained or stored on the merchant or business owner’s network.  These precautions can only protect the more technologically advanced society that has come to rely upon the convenience of both online credit card processing and in-person merchant credit card processing.  Further, you’ll be able to better protect any international credit card processing activities.

For more information on these new laws, compliance guidelines and what these changes mean for your business, visit the Security Standards Council website.  There’s a FAQ page that offers answers to the most commonly asked questions, as well as information regarding compliance deadlines.

First Data Independent Sales provides the latest merchant solutions for credit card processing.  Specializing in small and mid-size businesses, FDIS offers those solutions that benefit gas stations, fast food restaurants, convenience stores and many others.  Further, the FDIS Support Site ensures the process is streamlined for busy business owners.