What Your Organization Should Know About PCI DSS 4.0?

What Your Organization Should Know About PCI DSS 4.0?

• The Payment Card Industry has set a baseline for maintaining security standards. It is a whole set of regulations grouped as PCI DSS (Data Security Standards).
• It is a globally accepted standard and every business needs to comply with its technical and operational requirements to obtain Cyber Security Verification.
• Threats to the payments industry are increasing every day. Therefore, an upgradation in the security regulations was required.
• PCI DSS 4.0 is all about those upgrades in the regulatory requirements to keep online payments operational for your business. You will get to know every necessary detail about it in this blog.

What was the need for PCI DSS 4.0?

The previous version of the regulation was v3.2.1. It was implied a long ago. Since then, there have been a lot of changes in the economic structure at the global level. Also, the way businesses operate their financial activities has changed quite a bit. Most importantly, after COVID-19 the rapid increase in the use of contactless payment methods has induced the need for change in the regulations. Furthermore, malicious activities growing over the payment processes are also forcing the change. PCI DSS 4.0 is an attempt to satisfy all these requirements based on the ease of initiating contactless payments and making them secure as well.

What is new in PCI DSS 4.0?

A lot of people are speculating about what to expect from the latest version of PCI DSS. It understandably holds a significant value for many organizations. Any change in the IT infrastructure policy affects the organization that relies on these policies. Version 4.0 of PCI DSS has bought several changes with it. Also, there are some things that are completely new.

1. Access Management:

   The latest version of PCI DSS accommodates a few changes in access and authentication management. You will see it following the best practices of the industry regarding authentication requirements. The following are the key requirements in terms of access:

• Multifactor authentication for all accounts, not just the administrators.
• Changing the passwords and passphrases for all accounts used by applications and systems every 12 months.
• The passwords and passphrases must contain at least 15 characters and have both alphabets and numbers. Also, the passwords must not match with anything in the list of known bad passwords as PCI DSS requires.
• Companies need to review access privileges once every six months.
• Vendor or third-party accounts should get access only when needed and continuous monitoring is required.

2. Risk Assessment:

There are modifications in the risk assessment policies as most organizations are not treating it as a mandatory exercise currently. The new updates in the risk assessment policies will provide better clarity and guidance for the organizations.

3. Evolving Technology:

PCI DSS 4.0 will allow businesses to customize controls and implement them according to their own intent and requirements. Utilizing this, companies can accommodate new technologies and security solutions. This latest version of PCI DSS is devised to introduce more flexibility and support all kinds of advanced technologies.

4. Testing:

The documents for testing give a clearer explanation for sampling and scoping. There are additional directions to aid assessment and verify that controls are in place.

5. Scoping:

The accuracy of the scope of regulatory compliance needs documentation and confirmation once every six months. The period of review for service providers is only 3 months.

6. Security Awareness Training:

There are enhancements in the requirements for the training of end users. This will help to safeguard the cardholder data environment from security issues including Phishing and Social Engineering.

7. Monitoring:

You will get updates on the monitoring techniques for the cardholder data environment. These updates will reflect the advancements in technology, such as the availability of next-gen networks and endpoint detection tools.

8. Encryption:

There is an expansion in the requirements for Card encryption. This will include all transmissions of cardholder data.

How RSK Cyber Security can Help?

Compliance with regulations like PCI DSS is a must for Cyber Security Verification. Businesses need to verify their security functionalities to become secure from malicious activities. With this new version coming up, it might be tough for the companies to comply with the regulations due to the lack of awareness. RSK Cyber security can help you in the following ways:

• PCI DSS Assessment
• Gap analysis
• Penetration testing
• Vulnerability assessment
• Comprehensive Risk Assessment
• PCI Advisory Services
• PCI Continuous Compliance

Its expertise and a team with in-battle experience make RSK the company that provides the best Cyber Security Solutions in Dubai.

Before You Go!

• PCI DSS is a mandatory compliance requirement for organizations dealing with online financial transactions.
• The v4.0 of the regulation will take the expertise of a cyber security consultant to comply with. Try to choose a service provider wisely to get it done.