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PCI Compliance - What You Need to Know About PCI 3.0

Posted on Thu, Jul 30 2015 @ 12:32 PM

With several businesses recently experiencing data breaches, it's more important than ever to protect your business and cardholder data from hackers. What many small businesses don't know is that the steps toward PCI compliance have changed with the Jan 1, 2015 introduction of PCI 3.0. Here's what you need to know!

pci compliance

Why did the standards change?

The PCI Standards are updated based on feedback from the industry and response to current market needs.

Drivers for this change included:

  • Lack of education and awareness
  • Weak passwords, authentication
  • Third-party security challenges
  • Slow self-detection, malware
  • Inconsistency in assessments

The changes in version 3.0 were designed to help organizations take a proactive approach to protect cardholder data that focuses on security, not compliance, and makes PCI DSS a business-as-usual practice.

Education and awareness

Lack of education and awareness around payment security, as well as poor implementation and maintenance of the PCI Standards, lead to many of the high-profile security breaches that have been in the news. Updates to the standards are geared towards helping businesses and organizations better understand the intent of requirements and how to properly implement and maintain controls across their business.

What's New?

  • Best practices for implementing security into business-as-usual activities to maintain ongoing compiance
  • Navigating the PCI DSS guidance was added for easier understanding of each requirement and security goal
  • Req. 8.4 - Password education for users
  • Req. 9.9 - POS security training and education

Increased flexibility

Changes in PCI DSS and PA-DSS 3.0 focus on  the most frequently seen risks that lead to incidents of cardholder data compromise. These include weak passwords and authentication methods, malware, and poor self-detection. Added flexibility on ways to meet the requirements enables business and organizations to take a more customized approach to addressing and mitigating common risks and problem areas.

What's new?

  • Req. 8.2.3 - allows for organizations to implement the password strength appropriate for its security strategy
  • Req. 10.6 - More flexiblity to prioritize log reviews based on the organizations risk management strategy

Security as a shared responsibility

Today’s payment environment is complex, creating multiple points of access to cardholder data. Changes introduced with PCI DSS and PA-DSS focus on helping business and organizations understand their PCI DSS responsibilities when working with different business partners to ensure cardholder data security.

What's new?

  • Guidance on outsouorcing PCI Dss responsibilities
  • Req. 12.9 - PCI DSS responsiblities for service providers

In order to stay competitive in terms of security and compliance, businesses and organizations need to have a structured and continuos approach to solving ongoing security challenges, but it has to be easy enough to implement every day.  This is what PCI 3.0 is all about.

About Novera Payment Solutions

Novera Payment Solutions takes the worry off your plate. Our payment processing systems are PCI compliant and secure.  Our goal is to make payment processing easy and affordable. Our flat fee merchant account pricing saves businesses money, and our next day deposits ensure they have their money fast.

Request a FREE QUOTE

 

Tags: accept credit cards, flat fee merchant account, payment processing, pci compliance, accept online credit cards, credit card processing

If You Accept Credit Cards, You Must Protect Card Holder Data

Posted on Thu, Jul 30 2015 @ 12:29 PM

In October 2015, merchants will be liable for fraud on card-present transactions if the customer presents a chip card and the merchant doesn't have the proper system (EMV) in place to accept it. This means credit card merchants who don't make the switch to EMV technology may have to pay chargeback fees on any fraudulent transacations that occur.

emv transition

While EMV technology is extremely important, there is much business owners can do to protect card holder data and minimize fraud while they don't have EMV technology implemented.

Card Present Transactions

Confirm the last four on the card match the four digits on the terminal

Before completing the transaction, verify that the last four numbers showing on the terminal actually match the last four numbers on the front the credit card. As a consumer, you may have experienced being in a business and making a purchase where the clerk asks for the card after you swipe it. They are doing this to visually confirm the last four digits match. It's a simple, yet effective way to minimize credit card fraud in your business. Once EMV technology is implemented, this process becomes automated. But while your business is still running magnetic stripes, this step is important.

Confirm the customer is the cardholder

This is as simple as matching the signature on the sales receipt (or signature display) to the signature on the back of the card.  If there is not a signature on the back of the card, request to see a drivers license or other form of ID containing a photo and signature.

Card Not Present Transacations

Destroy card holder data in a secure manner

If you take orders over the phone or have to write down/record card holder data for some reason, it's essential that you destroy in a secure manner and in a timely manner after use. A cross cut shredder is advised.  Be aware, according to the PCI Compliance guidelines, you are not supposed to save or store card holder data in a non-secure environment.

Avoid sending or requesting card holder data through non-secure systems

Never request card holder data via email, and never send card holder data via email.  Never setup non-secure online forms to collect card holder data.

Do not setup non-secure online forms to collect card holder data

Online forms on websites that arenot secured with the proper SSL certificates and form encryption technology are dangerous and vulnerable. They are not secure and they are not PCI Compliant. Do not use them.

Do not store electronic card holder data locally

Cardholder data must be stored only on a server dedicated to processing credit card transactions, protected by a dedicated firewall, and subjected to quarterly security scans. You should not store cardholder data on a web server, laptop, tablet, PDA, or on portable media such as a USB drive. All are highly vulnerable to security breaches and they are not PCI Compliant.

Concerned About Card Holder Data Security?

You should be!

Working with a company like Novera Payment Solutions can help ensure you are meeting all PCI compliance requirements and conforming to industry best practices, enuring your business (and your customers' card holder data) is protected. Combined with our innovative flat fee merchant account pricing model, Novera Payment Solutions not only ensures your business payments security, but also saves your business a significant amount of money in credit card processing fees.

Request a FREE QUOTE


Tags: accept credit cards, flat fee merchant account, payment processing, emv fraud liability, credit card processing, emv

ISVs - Is Your Software Ready for EMV Smart Cards?

Posted on Fri, Jun 12 2015 @ 12:04 PM

With the liability shift quickly approaching in October of 2015, it is a good idea for merchants to have the EMV security measure in place. While compliance is not mandatory for merchants, those who don’t upgrade to EMV-compliant terminals face a liability shift for fraudulent transactions. Integrated payment solutions that combine software with the latest payment processing systems (including EMV capabilities) are the best choice for merchants.

As an ISV, Novera's WorldPay Link Gateway provides the opportunity for you to easily integrate EMV-compliant  payments into mobile, P.O.S., and even QuickBooks® processing solutions, it can even utilize multiple processor platforms. This new gateway makes it easy for merchants to accept payments anywhere they do business.

Integrated Software Vendors EMV transition

For ISV's the benefits are many, including:

  • Customized Merchant Boarding
  • Dedicated ISV Team
  • Flexible Merchant Pricing
  • Revenue Sharing
  • No Risk
  • Reporting Portal
  • Branded Referral Portal
  • Complete Marketing Support
  • Increased User Adoption
  • World Class platform
  • 24 X 7 US Based Support

Our robust API includes:

  • Oracle Database with 99.999% Uptime
  • Debit, Credit, Check, ACH
  • Gift & Loyalty
  • Retail Finance Cards
  • Auth.net emulation
  • QuickBooks® Integration
  • Processor Neutral

With the WorldPay Link Gateway API, you can :

  • Accept All Payment Types
    Allow merchants to accept payments how and when they want including online, point of sale (POS), mail order/telephone order (MOTO) and mobile credit card payments.
  • Real-time and Batch
    Flexibility to process transactions in real-time or batch processing for efficiency.
  • Stored Profile (Tokenization)
    Limit the risk associated with storing sensitive credit card data by using the tokenization and stored profiles.
  • Recurring Billing
    A robust yet easy to use recurring billing system that can be configured to suit the needs of businesses for membership dues or subscriptions fees.
  • WebPay
    Hosted payment solution that offers complete control over payment processing and customer experience without the costs and burden of security compliance for hosted transactions.
  • Fraud and Risk Management (FRISK)
    A customizable fraud and risk management system that maximizes sales and minimizes risk.
  • Instant Accept
    Payment integration plug-in for QuickBooks® POS to help expand the payment types merchants can accept, process and automatically record them within QuickBooks®.
  • Electronic Check
    This Feature Gives merchants flexibility to accept checks through online ACH, check conversion or check 21 and process them using the same gateway process they use for all of other electronic payments.
  • Shopping Carts
    Offer the ability to integrate into a vast array of shopping carts including Volusion, X-Cart, and OS Commerce

Enjoy Peace of Mind with the EMV Transition

The Novera Payment Solutions team understands that protecting your business and your customers is very important. You will be provided the tools and support you need to help simplify your PCI obligations and EMV integration to reduce the risk of fraud.


Our customers span local retailers, restaurants and corner stores to dentists, plumbers and eCommerce merchants—and every one of them can rely on the 24/7 live, US-based support staff who are highly trained to answer questions and resolve any issues that may arise.

A Company You Can Trust

Novera Payment Solutions, LLC (Novera) based in Atlanta is a registered Member Service Provider (MSP) of WorldPay. and a registered Independent Sales Organization (ISO) with Visa & MasterCard.   WorldPay acquires transactions coast to coast and around the globe ranging from brand name companies you already know to independent businesses in your own community. Point of sale authorization through settlement of funds, WorldPay provides the highest standard of payment processing to businesses ...businesses just like yours. WorldPay also offers seamless support and integration with industry-leading point-of-sale platforms and middleware providers, and it works with POS providers to certify new systems to their network on a ongoing basis.

Receive the Worldpay API

Tags: accept credit cards, payment processing, pci compliance, emv fraud liability, emv credit card, emv card, emv transition, credit card processing, isv, emv

Reduce Merchant Account Risk with the WorldPay API

Posted on Fri, May 29 2015 @ 02:47 PM

Merchants can breathe easy with the WorldPay API. Our merchant account risk settings allow you to reduce fraudulent orders on your website, and thereby save money. Because fraud risks are constantly changing, Novera Payment Solutions and Worldpay put significant resources into staying ahead of the trends in fraud management. This saves our clients the large expenses associated with managing fraudulent transactions.

merchant account risk mitigation

How We Do It

The Worldpay API verifies every single transaction against a minimum of 200 validation tests in less than a second. This helps reduces false sales and chargebacks.

For merchants, this aspect of the Worldpay API is preset to values which we know work well for the majority of businesses. There are two settings that merchants can change, however: 1) the Card Security Code check; and 2) address verification.


Address Verification

Address verification (AVS) checks the numeric values of the address provided by your customer against the information that this customer's bank has on file, producing either a full, partial or mis-match. AVS is used by all UK and USA card issuers and by certain issuers in other countries.

If AVS is switched on, Worldpay will decline all transactions which produce an AVS mis-match. Partial matches will not automatically be declined due to this check alone, and the same for transactions where AVS is not available from the customer's bank, in order to avoid creating too many missed orders for you.  However this means that AVS cannot be your only defense against fraud, and for this reason, Worldpay strongly recommends that you also switch on the Card Security Code check.

Card Security Code Check

The Card Security Code is the 3-digit number on the back of the card (unless it's an AMEX card, then is the 4-digit code on the front). The Card Security Code check ensures that the number provided by your customer matches that on file at their bank. If there is a mismatch WorldPay will automatically decline transactions.

The address verification check and Card Security Code check settings are both turned on by default in the Worldpay API when you sign up with Novera Payment Solutions.

 

Enhancing Risk Effectiveness

The risk checking feature is most effective when more information is provided about an order.

WorldPay recommends that the following details are included with every order:

  • Full Name
  • Billing Address of Card
  • Payment Method
  • Delivery / Shipping Address
  • Shopper IP Address
  • Shopper's session ID on your site
As always, the Novera Payment Solutions team is here for you.

We understand that merchant accounts and risk assessment can seem cumbersome for small businesses, but that's no reason to ignore it. The livelihood of your business can suffer if you experience too many fraudulent transactions.

The Novera Payment Solutions team works with small businesses to help alleviate the burden of credit card processing risk assessment and mitigation.  We can also assist you with PCI compliance and answer any questions you might have.

 

About Novera Payment Solutions

Novera Payment Solutions is a leader in the credit card payments industry. We are committed to helping businesses improve their bottom line by providing significant savings on credit card processingfees through our innovative flat fee merchant account pricing model.

Contact Novera to learn how you can accept credit cards for your business!

 

Request a FREE QUOTE

 

 

 

Tags: accept credit cards with quickbooks, accept credit cards, merchant account, accept online credit cards, online credit card payments

Easy Integrated Credit Card Payment Processing for Software Vendors

Posted on Sat, May 16 2015 @ 11:32 AM

Novera Payment Solutions is very excited to offer a new multifaceted API for software developers with WorldPay’s new Link Gateway feature. The Link Gateway allows you to easily integrate credit card payments into mobile, P.O.S., and even QuickBooks® processing solutions, it can even utilize multiple processor platforms. This new gateway makes it easy for merchants to accept payments anywhere they do business.

The Worldpay Link Gateway makes it easy to provide your clients with flexibility to choose the payments provider that fits their needs best.

integrated credit card payments

Easy Integration

Worldpays “Develop Once” approach is committed to reducing development time and allowing you to get to market quicker, plus it helps lower your overall program maintenance costs.

Security

The WorldPay Link Gateway is PA-DSS compliant as required by PCI rules. This will put your clients at ease and allow them to focus on their business.

Gateway Features

From all major credit and debit cards to ACH/check protocols, the WorldPay Link Gateway provides consolidated, flexible options for virtually every US payment transaction type and method. 

Accept Payments Anywhere, Anytime

  • Novera and WorldPay work hard to understand our customers' needs. Whether your clients sell face-to-face, online, on-the-go or even by MOTO (Mail Order Telephone Order), our flexible services enable your clients to securely accept payments anywhere, anytime.


  • Your clients will have the ability to accept a wide range of payment types, from VISA®, MasterCard®, Discover®, American Express®, debit and gift cards to loyalty cards, checks, Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) and ACH (direct debit).


Greater Peace of Mind

  • We understand protecting your business and your customers is very important. You will be provided the tools and support you need to help simplify your PCI obligations and reduce the risk of fraud.

  • Our customers span local retailers, restaurants and corner stores to dentists, plumbers and eCommerce merchants—and every one of them can rely on the 24/7 live, US-based support staff who are highly trained to answer questions and resolve any issues that may arise.

About the WorldPay Link Gateway

  • Accept All Payment Types - Allow merchants to accept payments how and when they want including online, point of sale (POS), mail order/telephone order (MOTO) and mobile credit card payments.
  • Real-time and Batch - Flexibility to process transactions in real-time or batch processing for efficiency.
  • Stored Profile (Tokenization) - Limit the risk associated with storing sensitive credit card data by using the tokenization and stored profiles.
  • Recurring Billing - A robust yet easy to use recurring billing system that can be configured to suit the needs of businesses for membership dues or subscriptions fees.
  • WebPay - Hosted payment solution that offers complete control over payment processing and customer experience without the costs and burden of security compliance for hosted transactions.
  • Fraud and Risk Management (FRISK) - A customizable fraud and risk management system that maximizes sales and minimizes risk.
  • Instant Accept - payment integration plug-in for QuickBooks® POS to help expand the payment types merchants can accept, process and automatically record them within QuickBooks®.
  • Electronic Check - This Feature Gives merchants flexibility to accept checks through online ACH, check conversion or check 21 and process them using the same gateway process they use for all of other electronic payments.
  • Shopping Carts - Offer the ability to integrate into a vast array of shopping carts including Volusion, X-Xart, and OS Commerce

Request a Complimentary Integration Consultation

Request Information About Our ISV Program

Tags: accept credit cards, payment processing, integrated software vendor, accept online credit cards, online credit card payments, isv

Merchant Account Integrated Software Vendor Program

Posted on Tue, Apr 28 2015 @ 10:19 AM

Novera Payment Solutions offers technology partners the ability to process credit cards through the powerful WorldPay platform. Whether you are looking to integrate card present, card-not-present (or a combination) into the software of your merchants, Novera Payment Solutions' services are unmatched in the industry.

merchant account integrated software vendor

We are experts in payments - and we share what we know to help your business prosper.

  • Our WorldPay platform is powered by one of the world’s leading credit card payments companies.
  • We work with all types and all sizes of business, making it easier for you to integrate credit card payments, keep your customers online and open for busineses.

Benefits of WorldPay's Integrated Software Vendor Program

  • Customized Merchant Boarding
  • Dedicated ISV Team
  • Flexible Merchant Pricing
  • Revenue Sharing
  • No Risk
  • Reporting Portal
  • Branded Referral Portal
  • Complete Marketing Support
  • Increased User Adoption
  • World Class platform
  • 24 X 7 US Based Support

API Benefits

  • Oracle Database with 99.999% Uptime
  • Debit, Credit, Check, ACH
  • Gift & Loyalty 
  • Retail Finance Cards
  • Auth.net emulation
  • Quickbooks Integration
  • Processor Neutral

Merchant Benefits

  • 24/7 Merchant Support
  • AMEX OPT Blue program
  • Weekend & Next-day Funding
  • Merchant Reporting Portal

Why Novera Payment Solutions for Integrated Software Vendors?

Our tools allow you to integrate merchant accounts with point of sale, eCommerce, and mobile payments into any application. Through the self-service sandbox, you can test transactions and explore payments functionality prior to production.

Integrate payments into your application to provide your customers with the payment options they need - card present, card not present and mobile. Our software development kit (SDK) and APIs allow you to integrate with ease.

We are a certified PCI Level 1 service provider, achieving the highest level of certification available.

Contact Novera Payment Solutions today to learn more about our Integrated Software Vendor Program and take your merchant account integration solution to the next level!

 

Request Information About Our ISV Program

 

Tags: accept credit cards, merchant account, integrated software vendor, accept online credit cards, credit card processing, flat fee credit card processing, isv

PCI Compliance is a MUST for Small Merchants

Posted on Thu, Apr 16 2015 @ 01:23 PM

A common misconception by many small businesses is that they are too small to have to worry about PCI compliance. This couldn't be further from the truth. If you accept credit cards online, you are required to be PCI compliant. If you are not, your business can face very steep fines.

You are solely responsible for securing your customer cardholder data to meet Payment Card Industry rules.

Small merchants are prime targets for data thieves ... in fact, they are some of the biggest targets because they are the easiest targets. It’s your job to protect cardholder data at the point-of-sale. If cardholder data is stolen (and it’s your fault) you could incur fines, penalties, even termination of the right to accept payment cards, which could be catastrophic for your business.

pci compliance for small business

Why Does PCI Compliance Matter for a Small Business?

According to the PCI Security Standards websute, more than 340 million computer records containing sensitive personal information have been involved in security breaches in the U.S. since 2005. Criminals target small merchants because most have minimal security for cardholder data. More than 80% of attacks target small merchants.

If you are at fault for a card holder security breach, your small business can face:

  • Fines and penalties
  • Loss of the ability to accept payment cards
  • Cost of reissuing new payment cards
  • Legal costs
  • Fraud losses
  • Loss of the business

What to Secure

Focus first on protecting the cardholder data under your control.

You are responsible for protecting cardholder data at the point of sale, and as it flows into your credit card payment system. The single best step you can take is to not store any cardholder data.

PCI compliance includes protecting:

  • Card readers
  • Point of sale systems
  • Store networks & wireless access routers
  • Payment card data storage and transmission
  • Payment card data stored in paper-based records

Small Businesses May Evaluate with a Self-Assessment Questionnaire

Most small merchants can use a self-validation tool to assess their security for cardholder data, which includes a short list of yes-or-no questions for compliance. You can access self-assessment questionnaires on the PCI Security Standards website.

How to Meet the PCI Security Standards

The PCI Security Standards website is an invaluable resource for small businesses working to be PCI compliant. Their suggestions include:

  • Buy and use only approved PIN entry devices at your points-of-sale. 
  • Buy and use only validated payment software at your POS or website shopping cart. 
  • Do not store any sensitive cardholder data in computers or on paper.
  • Use a firewall on your network and PCs.
  • Make sure your wireless router is password-protected and uses encryption.
  • Use strong passwords.
  • Regularly check PIN entry devices and PCs to make sure no one has installed rogue software or “skimming” devices.
  • Teach your employees about security and protecting cardholder data.
  • Follow the PCI standard ongoing 3-step process (below)

 

PCI Compliance: Ongoing 3-step process

  • Assess
    This includes identifying cardholder data, taking an inventory of your IT assets and business processes for payment card processing, and analyzing them for vulnerabilities.
  • Remediate
    Includes fixing vulnerabilities and not storing cardholder data unless you need it.
  • Report
    Includes compiling and submitting required reports to the acquiring bank and card brands you do business with.

The bottom line is that PCI compliance DOES MATTER no matter what the size of your business. We understand that it can seem cumberson for small businesses, but that's no reason to put it off or ignore it. The livelihood of your business may be at stake if you suffer a data breach.

The Novera Payment Solutions team works with small businesses to help alleviate the burden of meeting the PCI compliance standards. Our PIN entry devices and POS systems are PCI compliant, so you don't have to worry. We can also assist you with the PCI compliance self-evaluation and answer an questions you might have.

Don't take the risk. Find out if you are PCI compliant TODAY, and let us help you take the necessary steps to get there if you are not.

CONTACT NOVERA PAYMENT SOLUTIONS for a no obligation PCI compliance review.

Help! PCI Compliance Makes My Head Hurt

Tags: accept credit cards, payment processing, merchant account, pci compliance, accept online credit cards, credit card processing, online credit card payments

Make Sure Your Business Website is Mobile Friendly

Posted on Thu, Apr 09 2015 @ 04:32 PM

Is Your Business Website Mobile? 

According to www.SmartInsights.com, the Internet passed the mobile user tipping point in 2014. This means that there are now more mobile only users on the internet than desktop users. The numbers astounding ... there are now about 1900 MILLION mobile users versus approximately 1700 MILLION desktop users globally. 

Most Popular Devices

Some interesting statistics on the most popular devices that people are now using to search the internet: 
  1. 80% of internet users own a smartphone and use it to search the internet
  2. 47% use a tablet
  3. 37% use a game console
  4. 34% use a Smart TV
  5. 9% use a Smart Watch
  6. 7% use a Smart Wristband (and this figure with grow!)

Where users start their Internet searches? 

According to the Smart Insights research, 48% of mobile users start online searches using a search engine, like Google. Another 33% start on a branded website (like MSN or Amazon), and another 26% start their search on a branded app (like Yelp). An astonsihing 89% of people are using mobile devices to view social media via mobile apps.

Google Comes in to Play April 21

Need more convincing that you now need a mobile-friendly website? Search giant, Google, announced a couple of months ago that as of April 21, 2015, they will include "mobile friendliness" as one of their 200+ factors in their ranking algorithm.  Google updates its algorithm regularly, but rarely actually announces a specific date of implementation ... this means businesses better take this one seriously.

What does this mean for your business?

Having a stand-alone mobile website enables you to get in front of the huige mobile marketplace and display your important business information clearly and quickly to a mobile users.  This can lead to better sales conversions for your business. Plus, with Google's recent announcement, it may also mean that you website will rank better than it was without a mobile-friendly version.

About Novera Payment Solutions

Novera Payment Solutions is a leader in the payments industry. We enable small and large business to accept credit cards and save money through our innovative flat fee merchant accounts. Our customers can accept online payments using smart phones, tablets, desktops, and in-store terminals ... anywhere they interact with their customers, they can accept credit card payments quickly and seamlessly.
Interested in learning more about mobile payment options to go with your mobile friendly website?  Contact us and one of our team members will provide a free, no obligation savings analysis comparing our flat fee merchant account to your current processor!
Request a FREE QUOTE

Tags: accept credit cards, accept mobile credit card payments, accept online credit cards, flat fee credit card processing, online credit card payments, mobile payments

The EMV Transition - How It Affects Your Merchant Account : Part 2

Posted on Wed, Mar 11 2015 @ 01:54 PM

What makes EMV transactions secure?

Card authentication, cardholder verification and transaction authorization processes are all enhanced with EMV. Specifically:

Card Authentication: Is the card real? Unique data for each transaction travels between card, the POS device and issuer to ensure authenticity. EMV transactions also create unique transaction data, making captured transaction data incapable of being used to execute additional, new transactions.

Cardholder Verification Method (CVM): This step validates the cardholder as the legitimate owner of the card, using verification parameters set up by the issuer. The issuer of the card determines which of the following four methods will be required for a particular transaction: online PIN, offl ine PIN, signature or no CVM required. EMV supports each of these four verification methods.

Transaction Authorization: Like today’s magnetic stripe transactions, transaction information is sent to the issuer for approval. What’s different is a transaction-specific cryptogram (code) is also sent to the issuer who then either approves or declines the transaction and sends a unique response cryptogram back to the POS device for the card to interpret and validate the transaction. The dynamic exchange of information needed to execute each transaction provides the extra security missing from the static, old technology used in magnetic stripe transactions.

emv transition

How many US credit cards will be EMV-enabled by the end of 2015?

The Aite Group predicts 70% of US credit cards will be EMV-enabled by the end of 2015. It also predicts there will be 4.5 million EMVcapable payment terminals in the US market by the end of 2014, and growing to nearly 7 million terminals by end of 2015. (The Aite Group, LLC, is an organization that provides research and advisory services focused on business, technology, and regulatory issues and their impact on the financial services industry.)

 

What are the key benefits of moving to the EMV standard?

  • Improves transaction security for credit and debit card-present environments
  • Creates common cardholder experience globally
  • Supports multiple methods of cardholder verification (signature, pin, etc.), providing flexibility of payment acceptance without sacrificing security
  • Bundles emerging technologies - POS devices with chip technology are often grouped with NFC (contactless) and mobile; EMV adoption accelerates merchant capabilities to accept payments in new ways

 

When can US businesses expect customers to begin presenting EMV chip cards for payment?

Now. The Smart Card Alliance/EMV Migration Forum in May 2014 estimated chip cards in the US total between 17 and 20 million. It’s important for businesses to develop EMV POS equipment adoption plans now.

 

Should merchants upgrade or buy new POS hardware and PIN pad devices?

Review existing POS equipment or systems to learn if upgrades are possible or whether new EMV-compatible POS hardware must be purchased.

Standalone POS. The only job of stand-alone POS is to authorize and clear payment card transactions and it is the easiest EMV solution to implement.

  • Is your POS device EMV compatible? (Does it have a slot for EMV cards? EMV-compatible terminals have a slot, typically located at the bottom of the terminal, into which the EMV chip card is inserted and read; this slot is different from the side swipe used with magnetic stripe cards.)
  • If POS EMV compatible, will you need to schedule a service call to have EMV software installed or will a remote software download be available? (Ask your payment processor—which is Worldpay if we do your payment processing)
  • Worldpay’s standalone EMV solutions: POS VX 520 terminal and VX 680 wireless terminal. A remote EMV software download will be scheduled before the October 1, 2015, liability shift.

Request Information About the EMV Transition

Tags: accept credit cards, flat fee merchant account, merchant account, emv fraud liability, emv credit card, emv card, emv transition, flat fee credit card processing, emv

The EMV Transition - How It Affects Your Merchant Account : Part 1

Posted on Mon, Mar 09 2015 @ 09:42 AM

What is EMV?

EMV is an open-standard set of specifications that ensures functionality between smart chip cards and payment t erminals. EMV originated as a joint effort among Europay, MasterCard® and Visa® to improve payment safety through better card security and improved standards. Today, EMVco is owned by Visa, UnionPay, MasterCard, JCB, Discover and American Express. Payments industry organizations participate with EMVco as technical and business associates. Worldpay is a business associate in EMVco. Find more information at www.emvco.com

emv credit card transition

 

How are chip cards different from existing magnetic stripe card technology?

The EMV “chip” is a secure microprocessor built into a card or other payment devices (e.g. mobile wallet on smart phone). The chip generates a unique number for each sales transaction, making it extremely difficult to use a cloned card fraudulently on a card-present transaction. Magnetic stripe cards use static cardholder data that remains the same for every transaction, which makes them attractive targets for theft , cloning and use in card fraud. In addition to strong security features, chip technology includes other capabilities—like Near Field Communications (NFC) technology—which lets merchants accommodate both contact and contactless payments.

 

Why are EMV chip cards being promoted as a payment standard in the US?

EMV chip cards are already well-established outside the US, particularly in Europe. Crime migrates to the easiest targets, which right now includes the US. Upgrading to the EMV standard is anticipated to greatly reduce card fraud here in the US.

 

Why will more US merchants move to the EMV standard in 2015?

Beginning October 1, 2015, the major card networks agreed to shift financial responsibility for losses due to counterfeit card-present card fraud to the party using the least secure technology. Merchants that want to avoid this liability should implement EMV chip technology in their point-of-sale (POS) devices before the deadline. Chip and PIN payment devices are deemed most secure for card-present transactions. Ask Worldpay if you need help making decisions about EMV POS device purchases.

 

What does the financial liability shift mean and how will that affect my business?

Merchants who don’t use EMV capable—and enabled—POS equipment aft er October 1, 2015 will be responsible for card-present fraud losses in the following instances:

  • Counterfeit EMV card: Visa, MasterCard, Discover and American Express move liability to the merchant
  • Lost or stolen card: American Express, Discover and MasterCard move liability to the merchant; Visa keeps liability with the issuer

Please note a chip and PIN terminal provides the most secure transaction environment available today.

If you have any questions about the EMV transition, contact Novera Payment Solutions. We are here to make the transition as easy as possible for our clients.

Request Information About the EMV Transition

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