PCI DSS Compliance In India
What is PCI DSS Risk Assessment?
PCI DSS Risk Assessment involves the formal process of identifying potential threats and vulnerabilities that could pose risks to the security of cardholder data. The Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) mandates organizations to conduct an annual PCI Compliance Risk Assessment to identify and address these risks.
PCI DSS Requirement 12.1.2 specifically requires organizations to perform an annual risk assessment to identify potential threats and vulnerabilities that may impact their operations.
In India, our PCI Risk Assessment service assists organizations in proactively detecting, prioritizing, and managing security risks affecting their Cardholder Data Environment (CDE). Fulfilling the PCI DSS Risk Assessment requirements is crucial on your journey towards PCI Compliance. With ever-evolving security risks, our assessment helps you identify existing vulnerabilities and establish a robust defense against future threats based on PCI Risk Assessment guidelines.
Annual Risk Assessment
The PCI Risk Assessment is conducted on an annual basis, but it is essential to perform the assessment whenever there is a significant change in your cardholder data environment.
Formal Process for PCI RA
The PCI Risk Assessment must adhere to a formal process designed to identify threats and vulnerabilities linked to assets within the Cardholder Data Environment (CDE) or those that can impact the CDE.
Third-party Risks
Ensure that your PCI Risk Assessment incorporates the services outsourced to third-party vendors. It is crucial for organizations to conduct third-party risk assessments and identify risks as part of contractual agreements.
Asset Identification
Our PCI Risk Assessment encompasses all payment channels and assets within the primary and secondary scope, as well as those that might affect the security of the Cardholder Data Environment (CDE).
Formal reporting of PCI Risks
Formal PCI Risk Assessment reports document the identified risks, which are ranked and prioritized to create a comprehensive mitigation plan.
Risk Mitigation plan
Ensure that your PCI Risk Assessment includes services outsourced to third-party vendors. Organizations should conduct third-party risk assessments, and risks should be identified as part of contractual agreements.
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Identifying Assets Impacting CDE Security
We assist in outlining the comprehensive scope of PCI Compliance and identifying the Assets & payment channels to pinpoint associated risks.
Facilitate Risk Assessment Workshops
Hostshield’s assessors will facilitate PCI Compliance Risk Assessment workshops tailored for key stakeholders.
Conduct PCI Risk Assessment
We engage in PCI Risk Assessment through a hands-on collaboration process aligned with PCI risk assessment requirements and compliance directives.
Execute Vulnerability Assessments
Our team collaborates closely with your personnel to execute vulnerability assessments, providing you with a precise overview of existing security vulnerabilities on the path to achieving PCI compliance.
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
1. What are the PCI compliance tiers?
There exist four merchant tiers based on the volume of Visa transactions within a 12-month period. Transaction volume is calculated by aggregating the total number of Visa transactions (including credit, debit, and prepaid) processed by a merchant.
Visa’s specified merchant tiers are as follows: –
Level 1: Any merchant handling over 6 million Visa transactions annually, regardless of acceptance channels.
Level 2: Any merchant managing 1 million to 6 million Visa transactions annually, regardless of acceptance channel.
Level 3: Any merchant processing 20,000 to 1 million Visa e-commerce transactions annually, regardless of acceptance channel.
Level 4: Any merchant conducting fewer than 20,000 Visa e-commerce transactions annually, regardless of acceptance channel.
2. Is PCI DSS compliance necessary for organizations utilizing third-party processors?
Absolutely. Employing third-party processors does not exempt organizations from PCI DSS compliance. While it could potentially diminish their risk exposure and simplify the compliance validation process, it does not grant organizations the liberty to bypass PCI DSS requirements.
3. In the case of multiple business locations, is it necessary for each location to undergo PCI compliance validation?
If your business locations operate under the same Tax ID, then you are required to perform validation once annually for all locations. Furthermore, if applicable, you must submit quarterly passing network scans by a PCI SSC Approved Scanning Vendor (ASV) individually for each location.