Tag Archives: visa

FRAUDSTERS TARGETING CALL CENTER CHAT AND NON-VOICE CHANNELS

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Visa Security Alert to the risk of online chat solutions and non-voice channel services within call centers and merchant online environments, which are expected to increase along with artificial intelligence. There are known instances where threat actors compromised online chat service providers and were able to distribute malware to merchant clients designed to intercept payment card data during checkout.

Read the story here in the Visa library for merchants. https://usa.visa.com/support/merchant/library.html

The Visa alert also points out the importance of verifying your technology partners are secure and compliant. This is especially interesting in the context of this article.

The Visa Global Registry of Service Providers is Visa’s designated source for information on registered and PCI DSS-validated agents that provide payment-related services to Visa clients and merchants. Service providers that store, process or transmit Visa payment data must be registered with Visa and demonstrate PCI DSS compliance. All of the links in this article can be found on the merchant rules and  PCI compliance links

Christine Speedy, CenPOS Global Sales, 954-942-0483 is a PCI Council QIR certified professional based out of South Florida, near Fort Lauderdale, and Rochester, NY.

Equipment Rental Credit Card Processing Rules Change

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Bobcat, Caterpillar, and other companies that offer rental equipment, all are impacted by new credit card processing rules for rentals. equipment rentals credit card processing

While businesses expect their software, including ERP, Point of Sale, and ecommerce shopping carts to help them manage compliance with credit card acceptance rules, the reality is that many don’t. Compliance increases profits; non-compliance increases new chargeback risks, interchange fees, penalty fees and authorization declines.

Traditional desktop terminals don’t support the new transaction data requirements. If merchant is not using EMV chip device, now is the time to upgrade to a cloud-based solution and fix two problems at once. Rental merchants cannot meet both card acceptance and Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards compliance requirements using traditional paper credit card authorization forms. Cloud technology and a compliant payment gateway are needed. For example, pair the Verifone MX 915 with the CenPOS validated Point to Point Encryption (P2PE) solution and use either a standalone or integrated to ERP such as Microsoft Dynamics AX.

Key elements for compliance:

  • Initial authorization transaction must send new transaction indicator that it’s an estimate; the final amount could change for example because the renter kept it longer or damaged the equipment. This is technically managed by the payment gateway.
  • If applicable, send incremental authorizations with related indicator.
  • If storing the card, the Visa Stored Credential mandate outlines the specific requirements for agreement with customer, cardholder authentication, and procedures to use a stored card on file. For example, perform cardholder authentication with either security code or 3-D Secure. 3-D Secure can only be invoked if the customer self-pays; it shifts friendly fraud liability to the issuer and merchants can also qualify some cards for even lower interchange rates.
  • Update language in agreements for opt-in to terms and conditions as required by Visa.

Card issuers and acquirers were mandated to be compliant in 2017, and merchants by October 2017, however, there’s no mandate for payment gateways. Even if an existing payment gateway supports the new requirements, merchants must make changes. Visa is the most complex, however other brands have similar rules.

From tokenization to Express Checkout, CenPOS creates a seamless commerce experience throughout the enterprise. Innovations, including Express Checkout via text or email, help businesses maximize profit in all departments. CenPOS takes the heavy lifting out of payment acceptance offering a range of solutions that simplify every aspect of implementing, operating and maintaining a payment system enabling merchants to focus on their business. CenPOS Express Checkout via text or email includes 3-D Secure capability as part of a layered security approach.

CenPOS is an integrated commerce technology platform driving innovative, omnichannel solutions tailored to meet a merchant’s market needs. Providing a single point of integration, the CenPOS platform combines payment, commerce and value-added functionality enabling merchants to transform their commerce experience, eliminate the need to manage complex integrations, reduce the burden of accepting payments and create deeper customer relationships. Powered by its enterprise-class, end-to-end transaction engine, CenPOS’ secure, cloud-based solutions seamlessly integrate with a merchants existing infrastructure minimizing disruption and saving time and money. Committed to a merchant-centric approach CenPOS provides a one-to-one level of service and support, enabling merchants to focus on their core business.

Headquartered in Miami, Florida, CenPOS is reshaping the future of commerce through technology innovation and the secure, flexible and simple solutions this enables. Christine Speedy, CenPOS Global Sales, 954-942-0483.

Reference:

https://usa.visa.com/dam/VCOM/global/support-legal/documents/stored-credential-transaction-framework-vbs-10-may-17.pdf

See also core rules, especially section 5 https://usa.visa.com/dam/VCOM/download/about-visa/visa-rules-public.pdf

Are You Compliant? B2B Credit Card Processing Fact Check

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Merchant compliance with various credit card processing rules maximizes profits while mitigating risk. This is especially true for business to business companies. But that task is getting harder and harder with the onslaught of new rules, and virtually impossible if not using a sophisticated cloud solution to help manage compliance.

b2b visa stored credentialIf your B2B company stores credit cards, there’s a pretty good chance you’re not compliant. For example, Visa’s 2017 Stored Credential Transaction framework (PDF download from Visa) outlines merchant responsibilities to obtain customer consent as well as storing credit cards, using stored credentials (token), and managing stored tokens. Failure to comply with Authorization rules, for example preauthorization and final settlement do not match, has far-reaching consequences including higher interchange rates (the bulk of credit card processing fees), penalty fees and new chargeback risks. With so many new rules across multiple card brands that vary based on business and transaction type how can a business quickly ascertain if they’re compliant?

Quick tips to validate compliance:

  1. Is cardholder authentication performed when a new card is stored? When the cardholder data is entered and submitted, the issuer responds with an approval or declined message. A small charge is not an acceptable practice to submit transaction for approval; instead a zero dollar authorization request for authentication is submitted. If authentication is via 3-D Secure -Verified by Visa, MasterCard Secure Code, whereby the customer self-authenticates vs merchant initiating, reduced rates may apply. Under the new rules, two transactions occur at the time a card is stored. Compliant answer is yes.
  2. Is a transaction receipt delivered to customer when you store a credit card? This will be either for an amount or a zero dollar authorization. When stored credit card credential (token) is created, a transaction receipt is generated with the approval or decline and other mandatory fields. Compliant answer is yes.
  3. Does the receipt include “RECURRING” or “REPEAT SALE” for token transactions? Compliant answer is yes.
  4. Review merchant statements, usually the last 1-2 pages with the heading “pending interchange” or “fees” section. Do you see EIRF, STANDARD (STD), or DATA RATE I? Compliant answer is no.
  5. Can you produce documentation of customer consent to store their card (including with 3rd party service) and how it will be used?

If you’re not in compliance, your payment gateway is the most likely culprit, followed by ERP or other software integration limitation. I can fix that.

Reference: Links for all Card brands.

Need help getting compliant?

Call Christine Speedy, , for simple solutions to complex payment transaction problems, 954-942-0483, 9-5 ET. CenPOS authorized reseller based out of South Florida and NY. CenPOS is an integrated commerce technology platform driving innovative, omnichannel solutions tailored to meet a merchant’s market needs. Providing a single point of integration, the CenPOS platform combines payment, commerce and value-added functionality enabling merchants to transform their commerce experience, eliminate the need to manage complex integrations, reduce the burden of accepting payments and create deeper customer relationships.

3 Things CPA’s Must Advise B2B Clients in 2018

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Accountants offer professional advice regarding cash flow, accounts receivable, tax preparation and all sorts of other consulting. Credit card processing and all the compliance it encompasses introduced immense new compliance challenges in 2017, and it’s fair to say, most businesses have no idea what they are, or what the repercussions are. A big problem is people think it’s someone else’s responsibility to keep their business compliant. Every single merchant must make internal changes to comply.

Three things every B2B company needs to know about credit card processing right now:

  1. If you store credit cards, you must be compliant with Visa Stored Credential Framework. This is arguably as huge as the retail shift to EMV chip card acceptance. There are significant financial and risk consequences for non-compliance. Some solutions companies reduce the compliance burden more than others, while maximizing profits and cash flow.
  2. PCI Compliance mandate for TLS disablement will disrupt business, mostly starting right now, February 2018. Businesses need to ensure they’re servers, software (if applicable) and browsers are compliant, and also have an plan to help internal and external customers overcome issues trying to login to portals, make online payments etc.
  3. It’s a Visa rules violation to request the card security code on a paper credit card authorization form, or any digital form where the business can decrypt and view it. It can’t be stored, period. Not by the merchant nor service provider, including payment gateway.

Why these 3 things? Because 100% of B2B companies I talk to will fail on at least one, and usually two or three. That includes CPA firms also. 86% of all data breaches in 2016 were from level 4 merchants, defined as “Any merchant processing fewer than 20,000 Visa e-commerce transactions per year, and all other merchants — regardless of acceptance channel — processing up to 1M Visa transactions per year.” By complying with the three items on my list, B2B companies will harden their systems and increase profits. The latter occurs because compliance with rules reduces fees. 

Example of solutions to solve these problems:

  1. An intelligent payment gateway can automate compliance with many elements of the Visa Stored Credential Framework. Simply passing data as most payment gateways do is not enough.
  2. Engage internal or external IT team to test all systems for TLS compliance, and verify at SSLlabs.com.
  3. Empower customers to self pay via push (text or email), or pull (online hosted pay page) technology so that employees never have access to cardholder data again. Whatever the old justification for using paper forms with full card data, there is a technology solution that has negated the need.

Christine Speedy, CenPOS authorized reseller, 954-942-0483. CenPOS is a merchant-centric, end-to-end payments engine that drives enterprise-class solutions for businesses, saving them time and money, while improving their customer engagement. CenPOS secure, cloud-based solution optimizes acceptance for all payment types across multiple channels without disrupting the merchant’s banking relationships.

Delay in Compliance Action for Visa Stored Credential Framework

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From the Visa Merchant Business News Digest, October 17, 2017.

In the 1 September 2016 edition of the Visa Business News, Visa introduced new rules related to credential-on-file transactions, including merchant disclosure requirements and transaction identifier requirements went into effect for merchants and acquirers on 14 October 2017.

However, based on stakeholder feedback, and after assessing market readiness and taking into account the holiday season system freeze, Visa will extend the time to make the necessary system changes until 30 April 2018.

While the rule is still effective as of 14 October 2017, Visa will not take any compliance action or assess non-compliance assessments to non-compliant entities prior to 30 April 2018. Entities that comply with the rule by 30 April 2018 will not be required to submit a waiver request to Visa.

https://usa.visa.com/support/merchant/library/visa-merchant-business-news-digest.html

End Visa bulletin.

The stored credential framework applies to all merchants that store credit cards. Note, while some stakeholders were not ready as per the above statements, CenPOS was. CenPOS replaces other payment gateways, for example authorize.net, as well as solutions such as BillTrust, while enabling customers to keep their acquirers and other partners.

See more info here https://usa.visa.com/dam/VCOM/global/support-legal/documents/stored-credential-transaction-framework-vbs-10-may-17.pdf

Christine Speedy, CenPOS authorized reseller, 954-942-0483. CenPOS is a merchant-centric, end-to-end payments engine that drives enterprise-class solutions for businesses, saving them time and money, while improving their customer engagement. CenPOS secure, cloud-based solution optimizes acceptance for all payment types across multiple channels without disrupting the merchant’s banking relationships.