PCI compliance should never be separated from general security efforts
A lot of enterprises make the mistake of excluding PCI from their security program. This would be a big mistake. Be aware that PCI is a data security standard. It does not make sense to separate a framework designed to test the reliability of an organization’s security program, specifically when it comes to card payment data protection. This tactic is faulty and reflects how PCI has been misinterpreted and misapplied. The article below breaks down everything you should know.
You can make a lot of difference by choosing the right QSA (Qualified Security Assessor)
Businesses should hire PCI assessors with information security experience and understand the requirements of card payment industry security. Possible conflicts of interest can occur if a QSA company also provides remedy services and additional managed security services. While some reputable organizations fit this example, ask yourself whether the purpose of the QSA is to have the best security interests of companies in mind, or they just want to upsell additional services.
Focusing on the requirements of the PCI DSS (Data Security Standard)
A lot of suggestions in the PCI DSS make sure that you can avoid being the victim of a breach and are secure. For instance, PCI highly recommends segmenting cardholder data. It requires controls that monitor and limit network traffic from back-office systems and POS (point-of-sale) registers to be implemented. If you are not following this, you are both insecure and non-compliant (regardless of the amount you have paid to be compliant.)
Acquiring and Implementing tech tools is not enough — you should understand them.
An automated review of all system logs is required by PCI for the detection of any malicious activity. As a result, a large quantity of analytics/automation tools that claim to be the ultimate solution exists. While analytics and automation may be necessary, getting and executing them is useless if you and your IT team have not tried to understand what is being observed and reported.
Some of the most secure networks are those where specific teams are responsible for thoroughly understanding their network, the data flows and business processes, and the operations as a whole. This will make sure they can point out anomalous behaviors.
Having a professionally trained and highly valued security analyst team
Understandably, it can be challenging to find individuals like these. They are generally not motivated by the same thing as others, that is to say, they do not work solely for the paycheck. Most of the time, they care more about appreciation and recognition, not specifically from the management or from within the company, but from the peers in the community as a whole.
The PCI attempts to create a qualification standard for such individuals. It requires the operational processes to be assigned to specific roles/individuals– people who get acceptable continued training in their field. Aside from that, specialized yearly training is required for those who have responsibilities that involve handling incidents. They must learn the proper way to analyze and react to events and incidents.
A lot of merchants have their security monitoring tasks outsourced to outside providers. The question is, how can they know for sure that their selected provider has adequate staff, or whether they are trained to detect and review irregular behavior (instead of waiting for an automated alarm to go off)? Outsourcing the responsibility of your company’s network security to a third party means putting the life of your company in an outsider’s hand. If a financial need exists, ask yourself whether it will ultimately be cost-effective.
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