According to new statistics put out by Verizon Business, “PCI compliant companies are 50% less likely to suffer a data breach.“

In order to be PCI compliant, there are certain rigorous requirements companies must adhere to when processing cardholder data.  But if you think that the process to become PCI compliant is too overwhelming for you or your company, have a look at what happened in January of 2007 to TJX Companies, Inc when 45.6M card numbers were exposed.

There is a lot we can learn from the data breach they suffered.  After what happened to them, being PCI compliant just seems like a smart business decision and a no brainer to us.

The reality of a data breach can be harsh and extremely detrimental to not only you and your company, but also your customers. Just because your company may not be as large as TJX Companies, Inc., doesn’t mean you won’t be a target.

An article came out on Tuesday, which discussed the new trends in the type of companies hackers are targeting.  It all boils down to, if you store data, you could be a target, regardless of the amount of data you store.

Being PCI compliant is a continuous process as the standards of the payment card industry are constantly evolving to ensure the security of cardholder’s data.  At Chargify, we understand the importance and necessity of PCI compliance.

In fact, we are currently just a few weeks away from achieving level 1 PCI compliance, the highest level companies can achieve.  With level 1 PCI compliance, we will be required to adhere to the highest security standards for processing credit card information.  The safety of our cardholder’s data is extremely important to us, and should be to you and your company as well.

For more information on the being PCI compliant and the PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards), we recommend you check out the PCI Security Standards Council website.

UPDATE

We’re thrilled to announce Maxio now has PCI Level 1 Certification, which means the highest level of security for you and your customers. We are audited every year by a PCI-certified Qualified Security Assessor to confirm we’re maintaining the strict safety practices detailed by the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard.