Before consumers will take any risks on making purchases with a merchant service, they need assurances that their privacy is intact, their financial information is secure during credit card processing and that they are being protected from the invasive efforts of identity thieves through merchant service compliance initiatives.
Leading providers of merchant services offer credit card processing and POS systems management to most level 4 merchants such as debit card and credit cards from Visa, MasterCard and others.
Merchants understand, for the most part, that PCI compliance is not just a requirement, but a business responsibility for covering their consumers. Small business merchants believe that complying with PCI standards improves their business security. In fact since 2012, businesses that have stepped up their security PCI compliance have seen up to 50% growth in customer based sales, and even more recently.
Identity Theft Can Happen to Companies and Individuals
Business identity theft protection is as vital to thriving businesses as it is to consumers. When hackers compromise the security of business merchant records, they can get a hold of personal financial records of thousands of customers. With the continuing global growth of ecommerce trade, new innovative controls have been developed over the years to keep ahead of business hacker’s efforts.
Digital Solutions to Credit Card and Identity Theft Threats
Consumers are readily adopting the concept of mobile commerce technologies. Many find it easier to trust mega-corporations to secure customer online payments using business intelligence security using their smartphones and other digital devices than to trust the security of small businesses in brick and mortar shops.
One way financial institutions are protecting consumer security from identity thieves is by using geo-location within their payment and purchasing eco-systems. In fact, mega corporations like Google, Apple, PayPal and Square are investing big time in new geo-based technology. Processes for secure transactions using smartphone apps will soon become recognized as the safer and more secure transaction method, our digital wallets, over physical credit and debit cards.
Retailers have the capacity to provide security in a seamless, secure market with direct service transactions for their customers who elect to use mobile payment technologies. The built in securities in smartphones and payment apps will deter identity theft and wall out hackers, making mobile merchant accounts and their ecommerce companies highly regarded by consumers for their digital protective powers.
Efficiency in Chargeback Procedures and Compliance
An integrated online payment duty of merchant service accounts is to guarantee coverage for following through with customer chargebacks. The financial service industry is more versatile in administering certain guidelines and maintaining reserve funds for chargebacks for dissatisfied credit card holders. There have been many instances with banks denying valid claims because of their restricting regulations.
Pro-Active Protection Methods Used by Merchant Services Companies
Many merchant service companies provide their customers with software that can notify them if fraudulent activities are suspected on their accounts. Some banks will put a temporary hold on credit card activities until the customer makes a call to confirm unusual charges, before anything really serious can happen. If too many password attempts hit a merchant website page, their merchant account will be temporarily blocked until they call in to change the password.
Some merchant services websites outline the steps to take if a suspected fraudulent incident happens to a merchant account; these steps are designed to stop identity thieves in their tracks. Some financial services act as interceders between the seller and purchaser so they never have a printout or stamp of your account, and the information they receive on any transaction is limited. This can be as effective as using encoded passwords and account numbers.
Internet specialists, programmers and software designers are working around the clock to stay ahead with innovative features for safety in the online financial and marketing industry. Many trusted avenues for transferring money are being tasked to ensure that clients have a safe mode of completing business and sales without the danger of identity theft. Users who are observant, make good decisions and follow protection warnings when online can safely avoid identity theft.
