The year 2018 has been a landmark year for cyber security and compliance. The vast amount of data breaches, fraudulent online activities, and sophisticated cyber-attacks have made the digital world a minefield for businesses of all sizes. The cost of breaches in 2018 has been staggering with more than $6 billion in fines for the world’s largest companies. The good news is that there are plenty of steps you can take to not only prevent a breach at your business but to also keep it from being a matter of concern in the first place. The first step is to understand how the PCI DSS affects your business. Here’s everything you need to know about the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS).

What is the PCI DSS?

The PCI DSS cyber security is a standard for maintaining data security for organizations that handle payment card transactions. It’s a set of requirements, guidelines, and best practices that help organizations understand their risk and protect themselves from incurring fines from credit card companies. It was created by the PCI Security Standards Council, an industry standards organization run by card brands.

How the PCI DSS Works

The PCI DSS is applicable to retailers and service providers who store, process or transmit cardholder data. The regulation applies to both physical and digital environments — physical locations where equipment is located, as well as backup copies of data and cloud-based services. The regulation applies to both internal and external systems and networks. To comply with the PCI DSS, an organization must assess its specific business needs and risk profile against a set of broad categories.

The categories are designed to help businesses understand their risk based on the types of services they offer, what data they store, and how they are accessed. The information gathering and risk assessment categories are as follows: – Physical environment – This includes the physical location where equipment is located, such as a network closet, server room, or data center. – Access controls – These controls are used to protect the physical environment, including who enters the facility, who has access to the equipment, and how that access is monitored. – Logging and monitoring – This include procedures and controls for monitoring activity in the physical environment and for keeping records of activity. – Security incident and response – This includes procedures and controls related to responding to security incidents.

PCI DSS Requirements

  • A business must use appropriate encryption – There must be some encryption mechanism in place in order to comply with this requirement. Furthermore, the encryption mechanism must be applied to all data that could be used to identify or trace the data back to the entity that encrypted it. An example of this is a web server or database that contains authentication data.
  • A business must have a data governance and oversight policy – This requirement is designed to ensure that the right people have the right level of access to the right data and that records are kept of that activity.
  • A business must have an entity-specific data record – This requirement is intended to help businesses track who has accessed data.
  • A business must have an enterprise risk management policy and plan – This requirement is intended to help businesses understand and manage their risk by understanding their business operations and how data could be used to identify a threat.
  • A business must have a Penetration Test Policy and Plan – This requirement helps businesses understand and manage their risk by understanding their risk exposure.
  • A business must have a written incident response policy and procedures – This requirement is intended to help businesses understand and manage their risk by understanding the process for responding to a security incident. – A business must have a Service-Level Agreement (SLA) – This requirement is intended to help businesses understand and manage their risk by understanding their SLA with the card brands.
  • A business must have a Security Assessment and Risk Assessment (SAR) – This requirement is intended to help businesses understand and manage their risk by conducting a risk assessment.
  • A business must have a Corrective Action Plan (CAP) – This requirement is intended to help businesses understand and manage their risk by understanding their risk exposure and risk appetite.

The cost of breaches in 2022 has been staggering with more than $6 billion in fines for the world’s largest companies. The good news is that there are plenty of steps you can take to not only prevent a breach at your business but to also keep it from being a matter of concern in the first place. The first step is to understand how the PCI DSS affects your business. Here’s everything you need to know about the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS).