Square to beef up card reader security this summer
02 May, 2011
category: Financial
Fresh off the heels of a cash infusion from Visa, Square is planning to introduce a new card reader this summer, according to Techcrunch.com. One key difference is that the new system will encrypt data which it had been criticized by competitor VeriFone for not doing so in the past.
VeriFone claimed last month that Square’s payments were not encrypted, and therefore could not be considered a secure verifiable payment system.
Square claims to now support Visa’s best practices. “The adoption of best practices will help increase trust in innovative payment solutions. Of course, Square complies with all current industry standards, and we are committed to meeting or exceeding industry guidelines as they evolve,” said Square COO Keith Rabois.
As Square battles VeriFone, it also must consider retrofitting all distributed card readers with the new encryption technology. Square claims that its new procedures and systems going into place are retroactively compatible with older readers, and that businesses can have confidence that their equipment is secure.
See the full article here.