Payment Card Industry Standards Updated

--Credit Card Companies Update PCI

(8 September 2006)

The five major credit card companies, American Express, Discover Financial Services, JCB, MasterCard Worldwide and Visa International, have formed the Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council, marking the first time all have agreed on a common framework for payment card security. Their first order of business was to update the current PCI Data Security Standard by providing instructions for implementing the requirements and clarifying the language, for instance, replacing vague terms, such as "regularly," with specifics, such as "annually" or "quarterly." The council's goal is "to enhance payment account security by fostering broad adoption of the PCI Data Security Standard."