Small and medium businesses face fines if they do not comply with the Payment Card Industry Security Standard (PCI DSS) when handling credit card transactions, the Federation of Private Businesses (FPB) has warned.
The PCI DSS was originally developed in 2005 by the leading credit card companies as a guideline to help organizations processing card payments to prevent credit card fraud and other security threats.
Despite this, figures from the Association for Payment Clearing Services (APACS) show that payment card fraud is still on the rise – financial losses went up by 14% to £302m in the first six months of 2008.
“The consequences of not complying could be costly,” warned the FPB’s director of finance Nick Palin.
“With instances of credit card fraud on the rise, it is important that businesses put in place water-tight security procedures to minimize the risk of being caught up in the net,” he continued.
Companies found not to be filing PCI DSS compliance reports may be fined, made to pay the cost of a full audit, or have their ability to process cards withdrawn.
© Crimson Business Ltd. 2008
