PCI DSS v4.0: How To Comply Before Black Friday

Every year, Black Friday ushers in a period of fervent shopping activity. Consumers are bombarded with deals and promotions, and businesses brace themselves for a surge in sales. Cybercriminals see the opportunities too, so online businesses must prioritize payment card security during this busier-than-normal time. This is where the PCI DSS v4,0 (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard) comes into play.

What is PCI DSS v4.0?

PCI DSS v4.0 is a set of comprehensive requirements designed to ensure the secure storage, processing, and transmission of cardholder data. It applies to any organization that accepts, transmits, or stores credit card information, and compliance with its standards is mandatory for businesses that want to accept major credit cards like Visa, Mastercard, and American Express. It exists because online consumer protection is so important:

Cybercrime is on the rise. It’s expected to cost $10.5 trillion globally by 2025
The average cost of a data breach is $9.88 million
Non-compliance with PCI DSS can lead to fines ranging from $5,000 to $100,000 per month depending on the volume of transactions, and that’s on top of the costs associated with data breaches and remediation.

How does PCI DSS v4.0 impact Black Friday?

PCI DSS v4.0, the latest iteration of the standard, was released in June 2022. It introduced 64 new requirements, 13 of which organizations had to meet by April 1, 2024. The remaining 51 are currently best practices but will be mandatory after March 2025. Here’s how PCI DSS v4 is particularly relevant during Black Friday:

Heightened Scrutiny: with a surge in transactions, there’s a greater chance of security breaches. Hackers often target peak shopping periods like Black Friday, exploiting vulnerabilities in systems overwhelmed by traffic. Businesses that comply with the standard will have robust security measures in place to detect and prevent such attacks.
Protecting Payment Page Integrity (PCI DSS Requirement 11.6.1): businesses must detect and respond to unauthorized modifications to their payment pages, which is more likely during Black Friday due to more frequent updates and promotions.
Focus on Script Security (PCI DSS Requirement 6.4.3): malicious actors can inject unauthorized scripts onto payment pages to steal cardholder data, so this requirement mandates that businesses manage all payment page scripts. Controls like Sub-Resource Integrity (SRI) and Content Security Policy (CSP) can mitigate these risks. SRI verifies the integrity of scripts, while CSP restricts where they can be loaded from.

How can you implement SRI and CSP? Let’s take a look:

SRI

To implement SRI:

Use SRI with External Resources:

When including external scripts or stylesheets, add the integrity attribute to the <script> or <link> tags.
Generate a hash of the resource using a hashing algorithm (e.g., SHA-256).

Example:

Update Hashes: Whenever you update an external resource, remember to generate a new hash and update the integrity attribute accordingly.
Cross-Origin Attribute: Use the crossorigin attribute appropriately (e.g., crossorigin=”anonymous”) to ensure the integrity check works correctly across domains.

CSP

CSP (which, as we said, restricts where scripts can be loaded from) helps prevent various attacks, such as Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) and data injection attacks. To implement CSP:

Define a CSP Header:

Add a Content-Security-Policy HTTP header to your server response.

Example:

Policy Directives:

default-src: sets the default policy for fetching resources unless overridden by more specific directives.
script-src: specifies valid sources for JavaScript.
style-src: specifies valid sources for stylesheets.
img-src: specifies valid sources for images.
object-src: controls the origins from which objects can be loaded.

Use Nonces or Hashes: for inline scripts or styles, consider using nonces (random tokens) or hashes to allow specific inline content while blocking others.
Test Your Policy: use a report-only mode initially, to test your policy without enforcing it. This can help you identify potential issues.

Example:

Monitor and Adjust: continuously monitor your CSP reports to refine your policy and address any violations or vulnerabilities.

PCI DSS v4.0 Considerations

As part of your compliance efforts, ensure that you:

document the implementation of SRI and CSP.
regularly test and validate their configurations, particularly after updates to your web application or third-party resources.
educate your team on their importance in safeguarding cardholder data.

Best Practices for Securing Payment Pages

Use HTTPS (meets requirements 2,4,6 and 10): ensure that all payment pages are served over HTTPS to encrypt data in transit, to protect against man-in-the-middle attacks.
Regular Vulnerability Scanning (3,6,10 and 11): conduct regular vulnerability assessments and penetration tests.
Tokenization (2,3 and 6): use tokenization to protect sensitive payment information, so card details are not stored on your servers.
Monitor and Log Transactions (10 and 11): to detect and respond to suspicious activities quickly.

Additional Considerations

Other PCI DSS v4.0 requirements that may be more relevant during Black Friday:

● Conduct Penetration Testing (requirement 11): simulate cyberattacks to identify and address vulnerabilities in your systems before Black Friday.

● Regularly Update Software (requirement 6): ensure all software applications, including payment processing systems, are updated with the latest security patches.

● Monitor Systems for Anomalies (requirement 10): closely monitor your systems for unusual activity during Black Friday to detect potential security breaches promptly.

● Educate Employees (requirement 12): train your staff on cybersecurity best practices, including how to identify and report suspicious activity and phishing awareness (since many attacks begin with a social engineering exploit).

Is It Too Late to Comply with PCI DSS v4.0?

Not necessarily.

The key here is to identify the sections you haven’t addressed yet, especially the complex coding requirements like 6.4.3 and 11.6.1, which deal with the security of payment page scripts. Consider outsourcing these tasks to a trusted provider that can implement PCI controls quickly.

A good example of such an outsourced vendor is Reflectiz, the only agentless solution. Since Reflectiz is an external solution that doesn’t require any installation, it can be set up in just one or two days. This blazing-fast implementation time can help you achieve full compliance with PCI DSS v4.0 before Black Friday and the Christmas shopping season.

Moreover, a recent case study demonstrates how a smart approval mechanism can save you time. With Reflectiz agentless PCI dashboard, you can:

Save Time: Automate manual tasks and boost team efficiency.

Reduce Costs: Lower compliance overhead and avoid penalties.

Minimize Risk: Stay ahead of PCI DSS requirements and protect your reputation.

Get access to a 30-day free PCI dashboard.

Conclusion

As Black Friday approaches, the stakes for online businesses have never been higher. Cybercriminals are always on the lookout for vulnerabilities, and a data breach could have devastating consequences. By adhering to the stringent requirements of PCI DSS v4.0, you can protect your customers’ sensitive information and safeguard your business’s reputation.

Reflectiz offers a streamlined solution to help you achieve and maintain PCI DSS v4.0 compliance. With its agentless approach and automated monitoring, Reflectiz can significantly reduce the time and effort required to meet these complex standards. By leveraging Reflectiz’s powerful tools, you can: