Is your business prepared for the TLS 1.2 compliance deadline in 2018?

The PCI Security Standards Council is changing its security standards—businesses will no longer be able to use TLS 1.0 to secure credit card information.

Merchants must upgrade to TLS 1.2 by June 30, 2018, or they won’t be able to process credit card payments.

What is TLS?

TLS, also known as Transport Layer Security, is an encryption protocol that’s part of the next wave of PCI compliance. The TLS changeover is replacing the TLS 1.0 security protocol that’s out of date for today’s payment security needs.

TLS is used to establish a secure payment channel between two systems, which authenticates purchases and fully protects the credentials of all parties involved in the payment process. The current encryption standard, TLS 1.0, no longer meets minimum security requirements due to vulnerabilities in the protocol that cannot be fixed. TLS 1.0 and 1.1 have known security vulnerabilities that carry a significant risk of data breaches.

Why do I need to upgrade to TLS 1.2?

TLS 1.2 provides extra layers of security to protect sensitive credit card information and keep business details safe from hackers.

Merchants who upgrade will ensure that their payment systems are fully protected, but those who fail to follow through will risk exposing their systems to hackers and jeopardizing relationships with their customers. Merchants who upgrade to TLS 1.2 will have peace of mind in knowing that their sensitive data is safe and their profits are protected.

How can merchants prepare for the TLS 1.2 compliance deadline?

If merchants neglect to make the switch to TLS 1.2, they won’t be able to process payments and their business will be extremely vulnerable to data breaches, cyberattacks, and security vulnerabilities. The updated TLS 1.2 protocol provides higher security standards to protect merchants from third-party hackers.

Merchants are encouraged to migrate as soon as possible. Those who fail to upgrade to TLS 1.2 won’t be able to process credit card transactions starting July 1, 2018. To get up to date with the most current security protocol, merchants should consult a payment provider that ensures TLS 1.2 compatibility.

Since TLS 1.2 compliance is required to process payments after June 30, merchants need to work with a certified payment provider to verify that their software and hardware are up to date with the latest security requirements.

Any type of security-related switch can come with some obstacles, so it’s important to migrate as soon as possible to avoid missing the deadline. Merchants who don’t upgrade to TLS 1.2 by June 30 could see a serious decline in their revenue.

How do I become compliant?

Businesses that accept payments online are most susceptible to TLS vulnerabilities. In order to achieve TLS 1.2 compatibility, merchants should find a PCI-compliant payment gateway that provides TLS 1.2 compliance, such as EBizCharge.

A TLS 1.2-compatible payment gateway will provide optimal payment security and protect users from vulnerabilities. Plus, PCI compliance lessens the liability for your business in the event of a data breach.

Using a payment gateway that combines TLS 1.2 security with PCI compliance will provide the highest possible level of payment security for both businesses and their customers.

If you have any questions, reach out to us to make sure you’re up to date with TLS 1.2 compliance by June.