PCI DSS Compliance can have extended benefits beyond following regulations
Replacing earlier standards efforts by credit card issuers, the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) defines how organizations must manage branded credit cards. It aims to minimize potential risks and liabilities for card issuers, shareholders, and merchants and address concerns about credit card fraud by requiring protective measures for cardholder data.
For entities accepting credit cards, PCI DSS comprises a dozen closely defined requirements with 418 requirements for establishing and maintaining secure interactions with payment card data. Card brands determine the method of validation based on how an entity interacts with cardholder information and the number of annual transactions. Entities are required to validate their compliance annually, using validation vehicles ranging from self-assessment questionnaires to assessments performed by certified third-party professionals. PCI DSS measures can be costly and labor-intensive to implement and maintain. In addition, organizations may incur fines if compliance is flawed and find their reputation damaged if cardholder data is compromised.
Leaders in many organizations we meet are wondering whether PCI DSS compliance investments in systems and processes can have a larger impact. The answer is yes. You can realize PCI DSS compliance in a strategic context where it helps you realize best practices and make cybersecurity pervasive throughout your operations. Sikich will work with you to get there.
One strategy for compliance and cybersecurity
Often, organizations think of achieving compliance with PCI DSS or other regulatory frameworks as a strong indicator for the effectiveness of their overall cybersecurity. However, if they primarily focus on compliance and don’t consider the entire current landscape of digital risks and threats, they may still face a liability. In our security practice, we regularly encounter clients who were certain to have met or exceeded the standards of the compliance frameworks that apply to their business—yet experienced thefts or other crime by intruders targeting their systems.
In today’s business climate, security is critical for the viability of your business and its ability to grow and compete. For that reason, Sikich takes a holistic approach to PCI DSS and security. As you comply with PCI DSS, you bring excellence to one important area of the business. Compliance compels you to meet a broad set of minimum standards that are known across industries and familiar to criminals intent on stealing sensitive data or intellectual property. To generate the most advantageous benefits of compliance and security, we recommend treating PCI DSS and other compliance efforts within the context of a cybersecurity strategy that encompasses all your data, business roles, systems, and processes.
Working with Sikich, I’ve been able to see a direct decrease in disruption to the engineering teams. … Having this external resource allows [us] to focus on other projects and initiatives.
Eliot Cohen, Senior Compliance Manager
Spreedly
Collaborating with your compliance and cybersecurity consultatnts
Following this contextual approach, you can address compliance concerns proactively and boost the security posture across your entire business and technology environment. When we work with you, we help you determine an appropriate level of resource allocation, recommending measures required for compliance and those that help you ensure security. We assist you in designing ways to protect your data assets and systems to align with compliance requirements
In this collaboration, you draw on the expertise of our Qualified Security Assessors (QSA) who specialize in PCI DSS as well as security experts who understand your business model, industry, and technologies. Your Sikich cybersecurity consultants have a track record of many years helping organizations of all sizes successfully address their current security concerns and vulnerabilities. They know how to ready business systems and practices to weather emerging threats and withstand the resourcefulness of increasingly sophisticated criminals.
Aligning productivity and security goals business-wise
Naturally, your team members responsible for PCI DSS and the IT group will always be key collaborators for us. But we also want to connect with the executives and the managers running your lines of business. Almost always, they have security concerns that they may not yet have brought to IT. In addition, there are real advantages to achieving buy-in from leadership for more advanced security and compliance and up-leveling security as a strategic concern for everybody in the organization, not just IT. Executive alignment makes it much easier to bring teams together behind a cybersecurity and compliance strategy that can help the company move forward.
Many companies have to meet the systems and data management requirements of PCI DSS together with other regulations they also need to follow, like the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) or the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). No matter how extensive or complex your regulatory mandates are, we have the expertise to help you streamline compliance efforts and enable compliance that complements organizational productivity.
Expert delivery of PCI DSS Assessments and cybersecurity Services
Sikich is a managed security service provider (MSSP) with extensive certifications and advanced capabilities. As your security partner, we help you be proactive in forestalling risks and threats. A Sikich virtual chief information security officer (vCISO) can collaborate with you in evolving and refining your security strategy, and our security operations center (SOC) can keep watch 24/7 over your systems and applications. In addition to PCI DSS assessments, we provide a comprehensive portfolio of other consulting services, including IT audits, penetration testing, risk assessments, digital forensics, network security planning, and Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) support.
In Sikich PCI DSS compliance assessments, we review all systems and infrastructures you rely on to process, store, and transmit credit card-holder information. We also evaluate the roles of employees and contractors who have access to that data, the policies and procedures that govern you data and systems management, and the facilities where your data and systems reside. At the end of the engagement, you receive a report with actionable recommendations for remediating PCI DSS compliance risks and best-practice guidance for embedding compliance into your security practice. Your Sikich consultants will present and discuss this report with you to help you ensure compliance and boost your cybersecurity posture.
