Why All the Changes In POS Software Concerning Credit Card Security

All small retailers and POS software providers are paying the price for Visa and MasterCards defective system. I have added the following blog:

By Dave Hogan | Published: August 20, 2009:
This entry was posted in Loss Prevention, Technology

This week, a federal indictment was handed down to Albert Gonzalez, the professional hacker alleged of stealing credit card data from a wide range of companies such as Heartland Payment Systems, TJX, BJ’s Wholesale Club, OfficeMax, Barnes & Noble, Sports Authority, Forever 21, DSW, Hannaford Bros., and 7-Eleven. Keep in mind, these are just the companies we know of¦ I would not be surprised that when it is all said and done, we will probably learn that upwards of 300 million cards (that’s right 300,000,000) were compromised.

Is it not insane to continue to do the same thing over and over again with the same results? The major card brands and banks need to radically change their thinking. They need to accept the fact that they created the current general purpose payment system that consumers and merchants use today¦ it is their system. We are not just users of their system, but actually their customers.

The major card brands, specifically Visa and MasterCard, need to recognize this. They have a defective system that must be improved. Instead of forcing your favorite local florists, doctor’s offices, or department stores to secure the card company’s data, the credit card companies should be stepping up and doing it. Actually, they should be paying for the merchants to encrypt or tokenize their data.

In summary, credit card companies need to be less concerned with their bottom line and more concerned with protecting their customers. Otherwise there will be more Albert Gonzalez and major breaches of credit card information will continue to occur…and history will repeat itself once again.