If you take credit cards as payment, which most of everyone does, you need to be PCI Compliant. PCI Compliant stands for Payment Card Industry Security Standards. It is a set of security standards designed to ensure that ALL companies that accept, process, store or transmit credit card information maintain a secure environment.
These security standards need to be in place in case off a breach. Otherwise your organization is liable for the breach. Thus leaving your business down or you having to pay a substantial fine.
PCI is mandated by the Payment Card Industry Security Standard Council. This council is made up of major credit card brands. They enforce these security standards to ensure that their particular credit cards are protected in the event of a breach. However if you don’t apply the security standards to your network and terminals then you will either pay a fine or you can get sued by the credit card holder for not taking the proper precaution in protecting their information.
Don’t wait to get a PCI Compliance Test done. Be pro-active and implement the security standards. It only takes one swipe to be compromised so don’t take that risk. Protect your business and your clients.