ARLINGTON, Texas -- The Pinnacle Corp. has launched a new PCI portal offering PCI education and information, a resource area for security related topics and online PCI tools for retailers. The new portal is designed to help petroleum retailers navigate their way through the complex rules surrounding PCI Compliance, providing a collective set of research materials and tools that enable qualifying retailers to complete their PCI self assessments online.
Pinnacle's new PCI portal is accessible at www.whatispci.com.
PCI DSS is required of all merchants [image-nocss] and service providers that store, process, or transmit credit/debit cardholder data. Intended to protect cardholder data wherever it resides, PCI security requirements are a high bar to meet and will become more complex as threats escalate.
Adherence to the PCI "digital dozen" requirements has become a top priority for retailers. Failure to achieve PCI compliance by pre-determined deadlines can result in significant retailer penalties as high as $25,000 per month; fines for a compromise as much as $500,000 per incident.
During the past three years, Pinnacle has invested in continual security improvements to Palm POS as compliance standards have continued to evolve and become more stringent. Palm POS v9.2 passed the PCI Compliance Audit on October 23, 2007. Palm POS meets and exceeds the current Payment Card Industry (PCI) Data Security Standards (DSS) requirements, and has Visa's formal endorsement.
PCI compliance requires completion and submission of the Self-Assessment Questionnaire (SAQ). Pinnacle has partnered with Coalfire, an expert in PCI security, to provide a secure, on-line Self (SAQ) tool that enables retailers to understand, organize and complete their annual self-assessment activities. Through Coalfire's innovative Navis platform retailers can access Rapid SAQ, a self-paced intuitive program. Rapid SAQ guides users through the assessment process in plain English and accurately completes the required SAQ. The tool includes contextual help and guidance to clarify and simplify the process.
"PCI continues to be a hot topic in the industry right now," said Denise Lewis of Arlington, Texas-based Pinnacle. "Everyday there's a headline, or a PCI announcement, or a security webinar and the information can be overwhelming. Pinnacle is committed to helping c-store retailers understand PCI requirements and we hope to offer some real assistance with this online tool. Coalfire's new Navis platform provides very valuable tools that we are excited to make available to retailers."
Pinnacle and Coalfire plan to offer more self-assessment tools in the near future, the companies said.
Coalfire, as a Qualified Security Assessor (QSA), an Approved Scan Vendor (ASV) and a Qualified Payment Application Security Company (QPASC), maintains credentials recognized by the Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council (PCI SCC) and associated card programs, including Visa, MasterCard, American Express and others.
It provides services including IT controls reviews, IT audits, risk assessments, PCI assessment, GLBA, HIPAA, CIP and FISMA compliance testing. In addition to traditional IT assessment, Coalfire maintains specialized skills and resources to perform penetration tests, application reviews and incident response support to include forensic analysis.
Pinnacle is a leader in the automation technology industry focusing on the rapidly evolving convenience store and petroleum industries. It delivers products that automate the broad spectrum of convenience store operations and supply-chain management of fuel operations. Nationwide, Pinnacle's products and services are used daily in thousands of convenience outlets to automate and improve their store operations and by fuel marketers to increase their efficiency in the complex management of fuel delivery.
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