Merchant Regulations

As a merchant, it is vital to be aware of evolving standards for ACH processing, PCI compliance levels, point-of-sale (POS) terminals, and more. There are a few major updates to know about that affect merchants.
The great news is, if you use E-Complish for all-in-one payment processing, we’re on top of all these new regulations, and we make sure all our customers are compliant. Whether you’re using e-commerce services from us, mobile payment processing, or ACH processing, we’ve got you covered.
Read on to learn about the latest changes that may affect your business.

MasterCard Introduces 2-Series BINS

MasterCard holders have previously had 5-series numbers on their cards, the company started rolling out cards with an additional range of 2-series numbers. These numbers, which represent Bank Identification Numbers (BINs) to identify the issuing institution for the cardholder’s account, are meant to ensure correct transaction routing and improve security. This was also rolled out to accommodate for the growing number of MasterCard holders.

Merchant compliance to accept these new cards is now in place. This means, if you accept payments for MasterCard on a POS system or through e-commerce or another system, you must be able to accept the new cards with the 2-series BINs. Mastercard provides testing to accept 2-series BIN transactions, and any merchant services you use with E-Complish can process transactions for these cards.

POS Cryptographic Protocols Must Be Updated

The PCI Security Standards Council (PCI SSC) announced the deadline for updating cryptographic protocols, which affects payment acceptance. All payment processors must transition from using SSL and TLS 1.0 protocols to a secure version of TLS, which is v.1.1 or higher. The PCI SSC has stated that SSL and early TSL are rife with vulnerabilities, which put businesses like yours at risk for being a victim of a security breach if you’re still using them.

While the PCI SSC originally mandated that SSL was not to be used after June 2016, the date was extended to give POS manufacturers and merchant providers more time to migrate. The PCI SSC recommends moving on from SSL and TLS 1.0 immediately, though, or else business and customer data is at risk. E-Complish meets all the latest PCI compliance standards and ensures you’re covered.

PCI Compliance Must Be Covered Through PCI-Certified Professionals

Speaking of PCI compliance, all Visa PCI DSS Level 4 merchants must now use PCI-certified Qualified Integrators and Reseller (QIR) professionals for POS installation and integration. PCI DDS Level 4 merchants are those who process less than 20,000 MasterCard or Visa e-commerce payments a year, and all other merchants who process up to 1 million MasterCard or Visa transactions a year.

Visa PCI levels requirements also stipulate that PCI DSS Level 4 merchants who are using third parties for POS application and terminal installation must engage PCI QIR professionals and must validate their PCI compliance levels every year. Alternatively, they make take part in the Technology Innovation Program. Not only does adhering to these requirements protect Visa and its clients, it also helps ensure your business is providing security for your customer when you process payments.

Contact E-Complish With Questions

Navigating the often-confusing world of payment stipulations can be difficult. As a business that accepts payments, you should be able to rely on a secure payment processing service so that you can focus on other aspects of growing your business. When it comes to ACH processing, security, compliance, and card acceptance, you can trust E-Complish to evolve with changing industry requirements.

Want to learn more about how E-Complish can provide payment processing solutions or improve what you’re already using? Contact us online for payment processing information, or call us at (888)847-7744.