NRF's CIO Blasts Credit Associations' Security Program

Mar 12, 2007 3:00 AM

WASHINGTON -- In a telephone media briefing held Friday by the National Retail Federation here on “The Real Cost of Data Security,” Dave Hogan, NRF‘s senior vice president and chief information officer, described the credit card industry‘s payment card industry (PCI) data security standards as a “convoluted” program. Retailers, who are required to adhere to the security standards for processing credit card information or face fines, “get no clear direction from the associations,” such as Visa and MasterCard, Hogan said. He also criticized the associations for not responding in a timely manner to retailers‘ questions about their security status, adding that some retailers wait for six months or longer for an answer. The problem, he said, is insufficient resources committed to this area by the associations. -- Michael Garry