Who Enforces PCI Compliance and the Role of Stakeholders

The Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) is a set of security standards designed to ensure that all companies that accept, process, store, or transmit credit card information maintain a secure environment.

The PCI Security Standards Council (PCI SSC) is responsible for managing and maintaining the PCI DSS standards. The PCI SSC is a global forum that brings together payment card brands, including Visa, Mastercard, American Express, and Discover.

The PCI SSC sets the standards, but it's up to the merchants and service providers to implement and maintain them. This includes verifying the identity of cardholders, encrypting card data, and regularly updating security systems.

As a merchant or service provider, you'll need to work with your acquiring bank to ensure you're meeting the PCI DSS requirements.

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The SSC itself doesn't enforce its own compliance regulations. Instead, the responsibility falls to the five vendors: Visa, Mastercard, AmEx, JCB, and Discover.

These vendors are in charge of enforcement, but they often act in their own interests, which can lead to disputes and lawsuits. For example, Genesco sued Visa and won $9 million for Visa's overreach in enforcement.

The worst consequence of non-compliance is being added to the Terminated Merchant List, which can lead to irreversible damage to your reputation and banks refusing to do business with you for five years or more.

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The responsible parties for enforcing PCI compliance are not who you might expect. The Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council (SSC) itself doesn't enforce its own compliance regulations.

The responsibility falls to the five major payment card vendors: Visa, Mastercard, AmEx, JCB, and Discover. These vendors have the power to freeze your merchant account or add you to the Terminated Merchant List.

The Terminated Merchant List is typically reserved for perpetrators of fraud and other crimes, but non-compliance can land you on it too. This can lead to irreversible damage to your reputation and banks refusing to do business with you for years.

A small shoe retailer, Genesco, sued Visa and won $9 million after Visa overreached in enforcement in response to a hack from 2010. This highlights the potential for disputes and fines that these institutions can enforce.

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Enforcement Agencies play a crucial role in ensuring PCI compliance.

The Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council (PCI SSC) is responsible for enforcing PCI DSS compliance worldwide.

Each year, the PCI SSC reports on compliance trends, highlighting the importance of regular audits and assessments to maintain compliance.

The major credit card brands, such as Visa, Mastercard, and American Express, also have their own enforcement mechanisms in place to ensure PCI compliance.

These brands often work closely with the PCI SSC to identify and address non-compliance issues.

The PCI SSC has a robust process for handling compliance complaints, which can result in fines or penalties for non-compliant organizations.

In addition to these formal enforcement mechanisms, organizations can also face reputational damage and loss of customer trust if they fail to maintain PCI compliance.

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The PCI SSC is made up of several key stakeholders who work together to develop and maintain the PCI frameworks. These stakeholders include the Founding Members, such as Visa, MasterCard, and American Express.

The PCI SSC has a governing body that includes the Executive Committee, which consists of executives from the Founding Members, Strategic Members, and Strategic Regional Members. This group plays a crucial role in shaping the direction of the PCI SSC.

The Board of Advisors is another important group, comprising executives elected from the network of Participating Organizations. This includes companies like Amazon, Google, and Square.

The Management Collective is a group of executives elected from all the above groups, as well as the network of Affiliate Members. This collective plays a key role in developing and maintaining the PCI frameworks, including the PCI and PA DSS.

Here are the key stakeholders involved in the governance of PCI SSC:

Note that while these stakeholders play a crucial role in developing and maintaining the PCI frameworks, enforcement of the frameworks is not their responsibility.

To maintain PCI compliance, you need to understand the different levels of compliance and their respective requirements. Visa determines the level of compliance based on the number of transactions processed annually.

Visa categorizes merchants into four levels of compliance: Level 1, Level 2, Level 3, and Level 4. These levels are based on the number of transactions processed annually.

Here's a breakdown of the different levels of compliance:

The level of compliance determines the intensity of the validation requirements. Level 1 merchants, for example, have the most intense validation requirements.

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PCI compliance penalties can be severe. Fines can range from $5,000 to $100,000 per month, depending on the level of non-compliance.

The Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) has a tiered penalty system. The more severe the non-compliance, the higher the fine.

A Level 1 merchant can expect a fine of $100,000 per month for serious non-compliance. This is the highest level of non-compliance.

The PCI Security Standards Council (PCI SSC) is responsible for enforcing PCI compliance. They work with card brands to ensure merchants adhere to the standards.

Fines can be imposed on merchants who fail to implement PCI DSS controls. This includes failing to use encryption and secure passwords.

The PCI SSC also imposes fines on merchants who fail to conduct regular security audits. This includes quarterly vulnerability scans and annual on-site assessments.

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