Point-of-sale devices are an easy fraud target, say experts

Point-of-sale devices are an easy fraud target, say experts

Sometimes it seems like the crooks are faster at breaching security than the good guys are at creating it. This is especially true when businesses fail to adopt all security measures available to them. According to a study conducted by Trustwave, a company that investigates payment card fraud, point-of-sale devices are often the weakest link when it comes to protecting customers' payment information.

Trustwave investigated instances of payment card fraud in 220 investigations during 2010. In most cases, they say, the breaches occurred because of lapses in security tied to processing devices. Some of the lapses were related to the hardware or software used, while others were more user-related, such as the use of insecure passwords.

The reality is that small business owners sometimes cut corners when it comes to credit card processing. They use third-party integrated services for their point-of-sale systems, or they choose merchant accounts that aren't reliable or secure.

According to PC World, criminals prefer to attack point-of-sale systems because the data they derive from those devices is more complete. That's because they get all the information encoded on a credit card's magnetic strip, rather than just the account numbers and expiration date.

It is also an automated way to obtain payment card information. By breaching point-of-sale systems, they can obtain thousands of customers' credit card and debit card information, making the effort worth their while.

There are ways to avoid attacks on point-of-sale devices. If retailers are vigilant about following the standards set forth by the credit card industry for merchant accounts and credit card processing, they are less likely to be victims. Using encryption methods, for example, makes it much more difficult for criminals to use any data they collect. And the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI-DSS) instructs retailers to avoid using point-of-sale devices that store customers' credit card information.

See related: PCI data security standards: What they are and why they matter; Visa announced PCI compliance program -- but not for U.S. 

Published: April 4,2023