The January 1st, 2015 deadline for compliance with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards 3.0 (PCI-DSS 3.0) update is approaching rapidly, For the upcoming new year, there are several new compliance requirements, increased protection needs for network security threats, information security measures to ensure that payments are secure, and enhancements aimed at strengthening cyber security surrounding payments card data in general.
PCI Security Standards Industry
The PCI-DSS 3.0 update requirement was issued by the Security Standards Council, a well-respected open global forum. The upcoming PCI-DSS 3.0 update is not a newly created requirement since PCI lifecycle updates are mandated every three years.
The updates are carefully designed with necessary changes aimed at strengthening security and protecting cardholder data.
The Reasons Why
There's a critical need for increased security given the onslaught and increasing severity of data breaches and network security attacks that are not going away any time soon. These ongoing updates are designed to enhance PCI-DSS protection.
Regardless of the type of business that processes payment card data, there is no way to bypass or avoid the need for this update compliance requirement.
This update is necessary, considering the emergence and popularity of the virtualized services provided through the cloud; not to mention the constant onslaught of point-of-sale (POS) attacks from malware like BlackPOS.
PCI Spreads Globally
What we are finding is that the PCI-DSS standard is permeating markets beyond the United States and into locations with smaller security infrastructure. It is to an organization’s benefit to adopting the standards set forth by the PCI Council which allows them to more easily interface with financial institutions as well as other organizations they are doing business with worldwide.
In November of this year, the Security Standards Council arranged a meeting with industry professionals in Sydney, Australia. The purpose of this meeting was to discuss potential security options and enhancements that would help to protect and strengthen the payment card security standards around the globe. [1]
The mission of the Security Standards Council is to create a collaborative effort to further secure the future of industry payments globally. The PCI-DSS 3.0 standard ensures that the current IT security landscape is taken into account
References:
[1] https://www.pcisecuritystandards.org/
