SHAZAM Supports Adaptive Payments' Pentagon Mobile Payment Technology

DES MOINES, Iowa and FT. LAUDERDALE, Fla., Aug. 30, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- The SHAZAM Network today announced in partnership with Adaptive Payments development of a new mobile POS application known as Pentagon. Pentagon is a mobile payments platform, which allows merchants to accept mobile PIN- and signature-based transactions using an iPhone®. SHAZAM will make the technology available to its nearly 1,500 community financial institutions and its merchant customer base.

The technology that supports the Pentagon mobile payments application is unique to the marketplace as it uses Adaptive Payments' 5DSecure™  five factor, dual channel authentication technology to authenticate PIN debit transactions quickly and securely. The Pentagon solution is capable of accepting and processing signature-based credit and debit transactions in addition to PIN debit, and is a first in the industry to promote a mobile device capable of processing both types of transactions securely. To further strengthen security, Pentagon uses 3DES to encrypt the mag stripe right at the read head. The transaction produces a Regulation E-compliant receipt that is delivered to consumers via SMS text message. Unlike some other mobile payment providers in this space that disintermediate existing relationships, Pentagon is "an open platform" specifically designed to be accessible to all merchant acquirer processors, allowing financial institutions to use the product without changing processors and to customize it to "make it their own."

"Adaptive Payments' Pentagon technology is taking mobile payments to a new level of convenience and security," said Mike Hollinger, SHAZAM president and CEO. "Merchants of all types and sizes will be able to quickly, cost-effectively and securely accept electronic payments anytime, anywhere using their mobile phone." Adaptive Payments is a strategic partner of SHAZAM, and an important merchant acquiring distribution channels for the next generation of mobile payment technologies.

"We are particularly proud of the security that we built into our Pentagon platform," said Shashi Kapur, Adaptive Payments CEO.  "We are an authentication company first and foremost, and adding PIN debit acceptance and PAN encryption to our mobile payment platform combined with our open platform approach is something that sets us apart from the rest. As payments continue to evolve from traditional card present and card not present environments to increasingly more mobile and online environments and new channels and devices that are sure to come, payment security and peace of mind for all stakeholders will be a key factor in separating those companies and applications that are successful from those that are not."

"SHAZAM especially likes the PIN debit functionality. PIN debit is more secure for cardholders and provides lower fraud risk for financial institutions and merchants," stated Hollinger. "Our financial institutions will benefit by allowing their cardholders to conduct secure PIN transactions practically anywhere they go."

In September 2010, SHAZAM and Adaptive Payments partnered to provide Internet PIN debit processing and gateway services for financial institutions across the nation. SHAZAM and Adaptive Payments are also working together on a Person-to-Person (P2P) solution, assisting financial institutions' customers in transferring funds directly from one person to another, most commonly using mobile technology in real time. In January 2011, SHAZAM made a strategic investment in the payment authentication company, and the two companies have partnered to expand access for financial institution customers to multiple payment options through multiple channels, without sacrificing security or functionality.

Kapur added, "We continue to benefit from our partnership with SHAZAM, not just in financial terms, but also from a consultative point of view by helping us navigate complex regulations and work directly with us and their customers to validate new concepts."

About Adaptive Payments

Based in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., Adaptive Payments is a payment authentication company that enables easy, safe, secure, and authenticated transactions to occur using the cardholder's PIN or other data that is known to the cardholder to authenticate debit and credit transactions. The company has developed payment solutions for Internet Sales, Money Transfer, Bill Payment, Prepaid Top Up, mobile overdraft opt in and mobile payments. These products are delivered across all payments card acceptance channels. All Adaptive Payments' solutions feature "5DSecure"- five-factor authentication using two unique channels for authentication separating the sales and personal data from the secure PIN or other authentication token.

About SHAZAM

The SHAZAM network was founded in 1976 and is one of the last remaining member-owned and -controlled EFT networks and processors in the industry. SHAZAM provides innovative and state-of-the-art EFT services to community financial institutions in 30 states. SHAZAM is a single source provider for ATM processing, debit and ATM card processing, card authorization services, merchant processing, Automated Clearing House (ACH) services, and information security solutions.

SOURCE SHAZAM; Adaptive Payments