Join | Member Login
Arlington (VA) Chamber of Commerce | Arlington, VA 22201
  • Membership
    • Membership Benefits
    • Join Now!
    • Chamber Assisted Grand Openings
    • Chamber Member Retirement Program
    • ShopChamber
    • Advertising >
      • Website Ads
      • E-Newsletter Ads
      • Print Ads
    • Committees
    • LeadShare
    • Annual Corporate Sponsors
    • Member Login
  • Business Directory
  • Events
    • Chamber Calendar
    • Community Calendar >
      • Submit a Community Event
    • Networking Events >
      • Chamber 101
      • Breakfast Connection
      • Business After Business
    • Signature Events >
      • Arlington Business Gala
      • Hospitality Awards
      • Legislative Breakfast
      • Arlington Chamber Volunteer Day
      • AWE Women in Business Summit
      • Best Business Awards
      • State of the County & Public Safety Awards
      • Annual Meeting
    • Educational Events
    • Women in Business
    • Travel
    • Online Learning Center
    • COVID-19 Event Policy
  • Community
    • Arlington Restaurant Week
    • Small Business Accelerator
    • Early Childhood Financial Resiliency Accelerator
    • Coronavirus Resources
    • Coupons
    • Job Board
    • Scholarship Fund
    • About Arlington >
      • Business Resources
      • Map of the Area
      • Visiting Arlington
  • Business Advocacy
    • Public Policy Positions
    • Arlington Advocacy >
      • Budget & Taxes
      • Planning
      • Project Support
      • Economic Development
      • Processes
      • Retail & Signage
      • Transportation
    • Virginia Advocacy >
      • Budget & Taxes
      • Transportation
      • Economic Development
      • Other Topics
    • Recent Advocacy
  • About the Chamber
    • Board of Directors
    • Staff Directory
    • Chamber in the News
    • Strategic Plan
    • FAQs
    • Blog
    • Publications >
      • Arlingtonian Archives
      • Arlingtonian Archives
    • Press Releases
    • Contact Us
  • Membership
    • Membership Benefits
    • Join Now!
    • Chamber Assisted Grand Openings
    • Chamber Member Retirement Program
    • ShopChamber
    • Advertising >
      • Website Ads
      • E-Newsletter Ads
      • Print Ads
    • Committees
    • LeadShare
    • Annual Corporate Sponsors
    • Member Login
  • Business Directory
  • Events
    • Chamber Calendar
    • Community Calendar >
      • Submit a Community Event
    • Networking Events >
      • Chamber 101
      • Breakfast Connection
      • Business After Business
    • Signature Events >
      • Arlington Business Gala
      • Hospitality Awards
      • Legislative Breakfast
      • Arlington Chamber Volunteer Day
      • AWE Women in Business Summit
      • Best Business Awards
      • State of the County & Public Safety Awards
      • Annual Meeting
    • Educational Events
    • Women in Business
    • Travel
    • Online Learning Center
    • COVID-19 Event Policy
  • Community
    • Arlington Restaurant Week
    • Small Business Accelerator
    • Early Childhood Financial Resiliency Accelerator
    • Coronavirus Resources
    • Coupons
    • Job Board
    • Scholarship Fund
    • About Arlington >
      • Business Resources
      • Map of the Area
      • Visiting Arlington
  • Business Advocacy
    • Public Policy Positions
    • Arlington Advocacy >
      • Budget & Taxes
      • Planning
      • Project Support
      • Economic Development
      • Processes
      • Retail & Signage
      • Transportation
    • Virginia Advocacy >
      • Budget & Taxes
      • Transportation
      • Economic Development
      • Other Topics
    • Recent Advocacy
  • About the Chamber
    • Board of Directors
    • Staff Directory
    • Chamber in the News
    • Strategic Plan
    • FAQs
    • Blog
    • Publications >
      • Arlingtonian Archives
      • Arlingtonian Archives
    • Press Releases
    • Contact Us

ChAmber Blog

If you’re running a small business, your customers want you to take credit cards

7/6/2017

0 Comments

 
By Brian Danzig, Accept Credit Cards at Electronic Merchant Systems

That means you have to keep their credit card and personal information safe. Following small business PCI compliance standards is the best way to protect your customer data and avoid any fees associated with PCI compliance violations.

This guide will walk you through the basics of PCI compliance so that you have a clear understanding of what it is, the importance of compliance, and the consequences of non-compliance.
What is PCI Compliance?
When you or any other small business takes a customer’s credit card, you receive a great deal of sensitive data. The payment card industry (PCI) sets security standards for any business that deals with credit card information so that your patrons’ sensitive data is protected. The major credit card brands, which include American Express, Discover, MasterCard, and Visa, established these standards, known as the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards (PCI DSS), and continue to manage PCI compliance in accordance with these standards.

What PCI Levels and Requirements Apply to Your Business?
If you accept credit or debit cards, small business PCI compliance is a must regardless of the size of your business. You must comply with all applicable standards even if you only process one credit card transaction per year. If your business has multiple locations with separate tax ID numbers, you’ll need to validate PCI compliance at each individual location. If all of your locations operate under one tax ID, typically you are only required to validate PCI compliance annually for all locations. When applicable, you may also need to pass network scans for each location on a quarterly basis.

For merchants, determining the level of PCI compliance required can be tricky and often depends on how many payment card transactions you handle each year, as well as the credit issuer. For example: If you process more than 6 million Visa transactions each year, you’re considered a Level 1 merchant, and you must undergo a full PCI compliance audit annually. Merchants at Levels 2 and 3, processing 1 million to 6 million Visa transactions and 20,000 to 1 million Visa transactions a year, respectively, must complete an annual PCI self-assessment and are also subject to network security scans each quarter.

As a small business at Level 4, processing up to 1 million total Visa transactions in a storefront, or less than 20,000 ecommerce transactions annually, you must complete a Self-Assessment Questionnaire (“SAQ”) and an Attestation of Compliance (“AOC”) form annually, as well as conduct a quarterly network scan by an approved scan vendor (“ASV”), if applicable.

To stay up to date on PCI compliance information for individual credit issuers, click on the appropriate payment card brand below:
Visa
Mastercard
American Express
Discover

The requirements you must meet for small business PCI compliance include the following:
  • You must use credit card terminals and PIN pads that are up to date and compliant with PCI DSS.
  • You must not store any cardholder data in any way. This includes everything from storing it on a computer to jotting down a credit card number on a scrap of paper. If your credit card terminal and PIN pad are PCI-compliant, they are programmed to make sure you remain compliant with this requirement automatically.
  • You must use strong passwords. To do this, you should change any default passwords immediately and require your staff to change passwords on a regular basis. Consider using a password generator like 1Password to create strong passwords.
  • You must train your employees about small business PCI compliance.
  • Your point of sale (POS) and payment gateway software must be PCI-compliant and validated.
  • Your wireless router must be encrypted and password protected.
  • You must check your PIN pads and any other PIN entry devices to make sure that skimmers haven’t been installed. Skimmers are devices that criminals attach to PIN pads to capture credit card information when a card is swiped or entered, and they can take many forms. Also, check your computers for any rogue software or executable files.
  • You must install firewalls on your computers and your internal network. Your computer’s operating system probably already has a firewall as part of its security software, but check to make sure it’s operating properly.
 
The Self-Assessment Questionnaire (SAQ) is a PCI Standard validation tool to assist merchants and merchant services providers in demonstrating their compliance with industry standards. According to the PCI Data Security Standard Guidelines, there are five Standard SAQ validation categories that apply. Because individual merchants are ultimately liable for fines and assessments, you should always refer to these validation categories to select the SAQ and Attestation that best applies to their business.

What Does It Cost to Be PCI-Compliant?
The cost associated with PCI compliance varies according to the merchant classification Level. For Level 4 merchants, PCI compliance costs can be as low as $10 dollars a month, but vary greatly depending on a variety of factors including business type, software, hardware, vulnerability scanning, and SAQ.

These PCI compliance costs, however, are minimal when compared to the costs of non-compliance fines, which payment brands can adjust at their discretion, ranging from $5,000 to $50,000 in fines. Establishing a PCI compliance plan and updating it regularly can help prevent data breaches, keep your costs down, and maintain your customers’ trust and loyalty.
0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    The mission of the Arlington Chamber of Commerce is to strengthen businesses and the economic environment for those who work, live and do business in Arlington.
    Picture
    Contribute to the blog!
    Educate the Chamber membership and Arlington business community by writing a post for our blog! To get started download the blog guidelines and blog template. For questions and more information, contact the Communications Manager.

    Archives

    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013

    RSS Feed

© Copyright 2023 Arlington Chamber of Commerce. All rights reserved.
2009 14th Street, North  | Suite 100 | Arlington, VA 22201 | Directions
Tel (703) 525-2400 | chamber@arlingtonchamber.org
MemberClicks
Subscribe to This Week At Your Chamber
For Email Marketing you can trust.
Home | ​Join Now | Site Map