SecurityMetrics Helps Security BankCard Hit 94% Merchant PCI Compliance

NORMAN, Okla. and SALT LAKE CITY, July 14 /PRNewswire/ -- Oklahoma-based payment card services provider Security BankCard Center, Inc., announced today that 94% of the 4,300 merchants in its portfolio have validated their compliance with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS), and 100% are enrolled in the firm's PCI compliance program. The firm achieved this unusually high level of compliance using SecurityMetrics as its PCI compliance services vendor.

Security BankCard launched its portfolio-wide PCI compliance program in conjunction with SecurityMetrics in September 2008, following three years of using SecurityMetrics as its PCI vendor for e-commerce merchants. The program expansion was triggered by new PCI Security Council initiatives to require Level 4 merchant compliance.  

Within nine months, 95% of Security BankCard's merchant base had enrolled in the program and 80% had achieved PCI compliance validation. The acquirer and the banks for which it provides processing services then notified non-compliant merchants that their accounts would be closed if they failed to meet PCI requirements. The proactive effort quickly pushed compliance levels to near-100% with a loss of fewer than 30 merchants, primarily non-active accounts.

"This program was a major undertaking. The administrative tools, technical services and live merchant support provided by SecurityMetrics were instrumental in our being able to achieve these results, along with the personal relationships that the merchant services representatives at our parent company, Arvest Bank, have with these accounts," said Stephanie Cheek, Merchant Business Development Officer for Security BankCard. "Together, these factors accelerated our program success and enabled us to reduce the risk of a data breach that would shut down these small merchants and leave our agent banks stuck with the bill."

"The near-100% PCI compliance that Security BankCard has achieved is almost unheard of in a Level 4 portfolio, and it serves as a role model for the rest of the industry," said SecurityMetrics CEO Brad Caldwell. "Acquirers and ISOs who follow their model can replicate the achievement and better protect both their merchants and themselves from the liabilities associated with cardholder data theft caused by failure to toe the PCI line."

SecurityMetrics has assisted nearly 400,000 small and mid-sized merchants in achieving PCI DSS validation to date, ranking as one of the industry's largest PCI compliance service providers. Services include live phone support provided through a 175-person call center that handles more than 100,000 merchant calls per month, eliminating hurdles encountered with online-only programs that offer no personal assistance.

All services including telephone support are provided for an annual flat fee per merchant with no add-on fees for individual components. The complete package includes:

• Vulnerability assessment via SecurityMetrics' proprietary scanning engine, which checks for more points of Internet security than other services and individually lists each potential entry point on the SecurityMetrics Site Certification Report.  
• Multi-channel communications to encourage merchant enrollment, including a steady campaign of emails, faxes and outbound calls executed on behalf of the bank or ISO.
• Merchant Compliance Console, a web-based portal that equips acquirers and ISOs with detailed real-time portfolio compliance progress, drilldown to merchant scan and questionnaire results, and easy PCI compliance reporting.
• Unlimited 12-month 24x7 merchant telephone support on the Self-Assessment Questionnaire (SAQ), scanning and other general security questions provided at no additional charge, eliminating confusion caused by online self-service offerings.

The PCI DSS is a comprehensive set of global security requirements developed by the PCI Security Standards Council in order to safeguard cardholder data worldwide. The organization was founded by American Express, Discover Financial Services, JCB International, MasterCard Worldwide and Visa, Inc.

For more information about SecurityMetrics' PCI compliance solutions, contact a representative at 801.724.9600 in North America, 0207.993.8030 in Europe or 61.2.8011.3270 in Australia.

About SecurityMetrics

SecurityMetrics, Inc. is a leading provider of Payment Card Industry (PCI) Data Security Standard (DSS) security solutions, including the most successful mass-merchant compliance model in the industry.  The company is certified to perform PCI Scans (ASV), PCI audits (QSA), Payment Application Data Security Standards audits (PA-QSA), penetration tests and forensic incident response assessments (QIRA). SecurityMetrics also offers a security appliance that includes vulnerability assessment, intrusion detection and intrusion prevention capabilities. SecurityMetrics is a privately held corporation headquartered in Orem, Utah. For more information, contact SecurityMetrics at (801) 724-9600 or visit www.securitymetrics.com.

About Security BankCard

Security BankCard Center, Inc. provides commercial and personal credit cards and merchant processing services for agent banks. The company was founded in 1987 and is based in Norman, Oklahoma. It operates as a subsidiary of Arvest Bank. For more information, visit www.securitybankcard.com.  

SOURCE SecurityMetrics