PCI DSS for IATA Travel Agencies

Intro

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) now requires certified travel agencies to comply with the PCI Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) to protect payment data which was first introduced in February 2017 with a deadline of 1 June 2017, then the mandatory requirement has been postponed to 1 March 2018 by IATA source.

Why is IATA enforcing PCI DSS to all accredited travel agencies?

The carriers required IATA to support its internal compliance project by making the BSP card sales channel PCI DSS compliant. This is why IATA-certified travel agents now need to become PCI DSS compliant.
BSP is a system designed to facilitate and simplify the sales, reporting, and transfer procedures for IATA-approved passenger sales agents, as well as improve the financial control and cash flow of BSP Airlines. Billing Settlement Payments (BSP) is found in nearly 180 countries and territories. The system currently serves more than 370 participating airlines with an on-time settlement rate of 99.999%. In 2017, IATA’s BSP processed $236.3 billion.

What is PCI DSS?

The Payment Card Industry (PCI) Security Standards Council is responsible for managing the security standards for the payment card industry. There are 5 main payment card brands that took part in the creation of this Council: American Express, Discover Financial Services, JCB International, MasterCard, and Visa Inc.
How travel agencies in Saudi Arabia can become PCI DSS compliant?

There are 3 steps to reach compliance:

1. Assess

Identification of cardholder information
Taking an inventory of IT assets and business processes for payment card processing.
Analysis of vulnerabilities

2. Remediate

Fixing the vulnerabilities
Eliminating the storage of cardholder data unless absolutely necessary

3. Report

Compiling and submitting required reports to the appropriate acquiring bank and card

How Daam Al Arabia can help you:

Earning PCI DSS Level 1 Certification

Want to learn more about earning your PCI DSS Level 1 Certification? Contact one of PCI DSS experts today.

Security Assessments

Conduct comprehensive evaluations of your payment systems to identify potential security gaps and ensure alignment with PCI DSS Level 1 requirements.

Vulnerability, Internal, and External Scans

Perform thorough vulnerability scans to detect and mitigate potential threats that could compromise your payment infrastructure.

Penetration Tests

Execute advanced penetration tests to simulate potential attacks, assessing the effectiveness of your security measures and identifying areas for improvement.

Security Assessment & Analysis

We conduct a thorough assessment of your current payment processing systems to identify any gaps or vulnerabilities in relation to PCI DSS Level 1 requirements. This includes reviewing your network architecture, data flow, and existing security measures.

Our PCI DSS Level 1 Services

Earn your PCI DSS Level 1 certification and start your path towards secure payment processing. Contact one of our PCI DSS experts today.

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