Focusing on restaurant credit card security measures
The credit card industry has been coming down hard on tens of thousands of restaurants that have not sufficiently protected diners’ credit card data from potential theft, with Visa, MasterCard and financial organizations that process electronic payment over recent months sending warnings letters and holding seminars. Such moves are aimed at forcing restaurants to take in consideration additional steps on how to safeguard their customers’ credit card information.
For the companies that process card transactions, there are thousands of restaurants that are not complying with the security rules set by the credit card industry. Any company that takes plastic is required to follow a set of security regulations instituted by Visa, MasterCard, American Express and Discover.
In the data recorded by Visa indicates that since January of 2005, around 40% of the incident wherein criminals gain unauthorized access to credit card info is made up of restaurants — accounting for the largest percentage of incidents for a merchant category.
Separately, AmbironTrustWave, a Chicago-based data security auditor for merchants, reported that 62 percent of the security violations it witnessed during the prior 18 months occurred in the restaurant industry.
The violations involved various security lapses such as poor guarding of wireless networks — which easily enable thieves to access sensitive information just outside of the parking lot using a laptop — and the lack of strictness to their systems that make it possible for unethical employees to grab credit card information.
Consumers often are unaware when their credit card information is in danger. Not all security breaches produced successful fraud, and most merchants do not recognize these incidents unless there is a significant likelihood that a major fraud will take place or has already been identified. In addition, issuers of credit cards usually don’t close a customer’s account except if fraud has taken place.
Restaurant owners may have a difficult time with credit card security rules, since its regulations can be very hard for small merchants. Hearing from the restaurant owners who thought they complied with rules, the National Restaurant Association trade group found out their systems were not functioning properly and were penalized.
An amount of 0,000 or more in some cases have been fined to restaurants that violated the credit card industry rules by keeping credit card information. Merchants across all categories .6 million for security violations were fined by Visa in 2006, an increase from the .4 million in fines the previous year.
Visa, believes a merchant group needs additional attention, held special security briefings with several hundred restaurants.
During the same time, companies that process credit card transactions are also turning up the heat on restaurants. These credit card companies, as punishment, will end services to those who disregards the security regulations.
Credit card companies are especially worried about specialized software restaurants use, which combine such features as tabulating bills, delivering orders to the kitchen and tracking reservations. Since credit card companies cannot require software makers to abide by their security rules, they instead apply pressure to restaurants. In Visa’s web site, they maintain a list of software programs that meet its requirements.
But software developers that even with the best software, restaurants can still be in a lot of trouble if they do not use password protection or firewalls. Software companies say it is not up to them to let restaurateurs know what they must do to be in compliance with credit card rules.
The author of this article writes for POS-For-Restaurants.com, a VP of Customer Relations with over 20 years experience in restaurant point of sale system, helping restaurant owners nationwide increase their efficiency and bottom-line profits.
To learn on how our national POS network of restaurant point of sale professionals can help your business achieve greater success in these difficult economic times, visit POS-For-Restaurants.com.
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