Small business partners and customers rely on you, their risk is your risk, and helping them helps you. So making sure that your services are PCI Compliant is extremely important.

Understand your risk

Large enterprises are not the only types of businesses that are at risk of security breaches. Data thieves look at small businesses as an easy target because a large amount of them don’t take PCI compliance seriously. However, according to the NCSA, 60% of small to medium-sized businesses closed within 6 months after a breach. In addition:

• The cost of a breach can add up to 20 times the cost of PCI Compliance. $3.8 million is now the average total cost of a data breach.
• In 2016, $1 Billion a year was the estimated cost of ransomware crime.
• Due to updates, 99% of computers use software that is at risk to attacks (PCICompliance. org).

There are a diverse range of risks that can be associated with security. These include types of threats to the organization, what needs to be protected, how vulnerable the organization is, likelihood of threat, impact if a threat occurs, and how to reduce it.

Now that you understand the importance of protecting small business transactions, let’s take a closer look on how you as a merchant can help. Below are three simple steps you can take to help small businesses secure their payments.

Security basics to protect your business

Security basics can range in cost, ease, and risk mitigation. Here are a few security basics that you can start implementing inside your business today to help protect sensitive data:

• Create strong passwords and eliminate the use of any default passwords
• Only store the sensitive information that you absolutely need
• Immediately install any patches from your vendors when provided
• Only process payments through secure software that has been validated by the PCI Security Standards Council

For more security basics, visit the Guide to Safe Payments.

Once you have secured your own business’ data, you can help other merchants learn more about PCI by:

1. Downloading the four PCI Payment Protection Resources for Small Merchants
   • Guide to Safe Payments
   • Common Payment Systems
   • Questions to Ask your Vendors
   • Glossary of Payment and Information Security Terms

2. Sharing and Co-branding them with your network
   • Help spread the word through social media. The PCI website offers downloadable images that you can share on your  social media.
   • Build trust with your customers through co-branding your company with PCI

3. Scheduling Training
   • The PCI security standards website recommends training. They have an entry level option, a more advanced training option, and additional educational resources that they provide.

Part of achieving and maintaining PCI compliance is using a validated payment application for processing your electronic payments. All of Nodus’ solutions have been PA-DSS certified by the PCI Security Standards Councils. Click below to learn about each of our solutions:

• ERP & CRM Payment Processing
• Online Bill Pay
• eCommerce
• PayLink
• PayFabric

For more information, schedule a demo today.