Nearly a third of merchants who participated in a recent survey believe mPOS to be riskier than standard e-commerce offerings. As more merchants march onward to replace their POS systems with mobile solutions, unprotected data is providing a slew of opportunities for malware to damage businesses, says Bluefin Payment Systems. To keep up with skyrocketing mPOS adoption and the growing need for better security measures, Bluefin’s new whitepaper reveals the top four essential elements to delivering and securing a modern, enterprise-grade mPOS solution amidst a digital payments revolution. Nearly a third of merchants who participated in a recent survey believe mPOS to be riskier than standard e-commerce offerings. As more merchants march onward to replace their POS systems with mobile solutions, unprotected data is providing a slew of opportunities for malware to damage businesses, says Bluefin Payment Systems. To keep up with skyrocketing mPOS adoption and the growing need for better security measures, Bluefin’s new whitepaper reveals the top four essential elements to delivering and securing a modern, enterprise-grade mPOS solution amidst a digital payments revolution.
Nearly a third of merchants who participated in a recent survey believe mPOS to be riskier than standard e-commerce offerings. As more merchants march onward to replace their POS systems with mobile solutions, unprotected data is providing a slew of opportunities for malware to damage businesses, says Bluefin Payment Systems. To keep up with skyrocketing mPOS adoption and the growing need for better security measures, Bluefin’s new whitepaper reveals the Top 4 essential elements to delivering and securing a modern, enterprise-grade mPOS solution amidst a digital payments revolution.
Today, mPOS is about more than just enabling card acceptance for micro-merchants using smartphones. As adoption of these solutions grows, especially among larger merchants like Nordstrom and Apple, mPOS security is now at the forefront of discussions. While developments in the space have helped retailers provide both a seamless personalized interaction with consumers and fight the growing threat of online commerce, there are many essentials that are required to create the ideal mPOS solution.
MPOS ESSENTIAL No. 1: SECURITY
Protecting cardholder data, guarding against fraud and reducing merchant and issuer liability, says Bluefin, requires a multi-faceted approach. The Payment Card Industry (PCI) Security Standards Council (SSC), as well as other local laws that hold merchants accountable for the security of cardholder data put forth the security regulations for payment systems.
The challenge with mobile technology today and its PCI compliance stems from the security protocols of the mobile phone or tablet, says Bluefin. Merchants don’t currently have the ability to modify mobile device configurations as the security of mobile phones continues to evolve. mPOS solutions also have open architecture that leave them susceptible to fraud and malware.
One of the four key essentials to delivering the right mPOS solution is PCI-validated Point-to-Point Encryption (P2PE) for mobile payments, introduced by Bluefin Payment Systems in 2014. To date, there are six PCI-validated P2PE solutions globally.
PCI-validated P2PE solutions secure card transactions by encrypting all data within a PCI-approved point of entry swipe or keypad device. This prevents clear-text cardholder data from being available in the device or the merchants’ system where it could be exposed to malware.
While P2PE is an mPOS security essential, EMV and tokenization are also equally as essential. Each make up the three key security technologies in 2015, says Bluefin.
MPOS ESSENTIAL No. 2: SEAMLESS
MPOS solutions must also support the seamless delivery of front and back office functions to enable real-time inventory management, customer preferences and recognition, and accounting systems integration. In order to do this, Bluefin says using a cloud-based platform is key – as well as a software development kit that offers an easy-to-integrate “plug-and-play” set of capabilities for merchants.
The strongest and most seamless mPOS solutions, adds Bluefin, will accept more than just card payments. They will accept and manage payments via gift card, cash, check and offer integration into other methods like PayPal and Apple Pay.
MPOS SOLUTION No. 3: SCALABLE
In addition to security and seamlessness, an mPOS solution must also be scalable. “One size never fits all and industries and merchants can have different needs and pain at any time,” says Bluefin.
A restaurant might want to support online ordering, catering and table service, not just payment at a table. In this case, a scalable solution is required, allowing merchants to integrate and enable new capabilities without having to change platforms, costing them time and money.
MPOS SOLUTION No. 4: REVENUE GENERATING
While payment acceptance is still the baseline requirement of all mPOS solutions, what’s essential is a solution that enables new revenue-generating capabilities, says Bluefin. These range from the ability to enable promotions, offers and loyalty schemes to customers to triggering dynamic pricing based on inventory availability or customer demand.
For a complete checklist of what’s needed and what’s essential in mPOS, as well as the advantages of Bluefin’s QuickSwipe solution, download the whitepaper “mPOS Security Evolution” by clicking the button below:
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