EFT Processing

Soon you may be paying more for your EFT processing.

Perhaps you already knowthat October 1, 2011 was the effective date for the Durbin amendment to takeeffect.  This amendment is supposed toreduce your processing costs for debit cards. That was indeed the plan, however since the banks have begun chargingmore fees and stopped supporting rewards programs when customers use theirdebit cards, the customers have begun using more credit cards with a muchhigher fee for processing.

Below is the simplestsummary of the "Durbin Amendment" that can be found on the internet.

Rule #1 – Debit interchange fees are capped at 21 cents per cardtransaction, plus five basis points upon ticket amount, plus one cent for cardissuers who have implemented fraud prevention procedures.

Rule #2 – Debit transactions must be able to be routed through twounaffiliated networks and merchants can designate preferred routing.

Previously implemented rules noted in the Amendment:

• Companies have the right to set a minimum amount ($10.00 or less)for which they will accept credit cards (not debit cards) as payment options.
• Merchants have the option to offer discounts for cash payments, butcannot favor one card over another.

http://www.paymentsnews.com/2011/06/federal-reserve-final-rules-on-durbin-amendment.html

http://www.durbininterchangeamendment.org/

Regulation II - Debit Card Interchange Fees and Routing [R-1404]
Comments

http://www.federalreserve.gov/generalinfo/foia/index.cfm?doc_id=R-1404&doc_ver=1&ShowAll=Yes

Rules summary

http://www.chargelogic.com/blog/tag/durbin-amendment/

PCI Update

PCI is always changingand it is the best practice for any merchant that accepts credit card to bevigilant in their efforts to become and stay PCI compliant.

Card brands and the PCI Council are comfortable with theLevel 1 and 2 Merchants compliance level and are going to start focusing onLevel 3 and 4 Merchants.  85% plus of allbreaches are in level 4 Merchants. 

In 2010 60% of Losses were due to 3 areas:

·       Lost/StolenDevices
·       Maliciousattacks from third party
·       Theft frominsider, employee/friend

It is important that you don’t fall under the misconceptionthat you can be PCI by a simple step or that because you are a small store youdon’t have to comply.  Below are answersto some PCI myths as well as some best practice tips:

1.    PCIapplies to everyone who accepts payment cards even if it just one.
2.    Tokenizationdoes not make you compliant.
3.    Usinga compliant payment application will help facilitate PCI compliance but doesnot make you compliant.
4.    Usinga third party payment process does not exclude you from becomingcompliant.  The merchant needs to ensurethe third party is compliant.  The Physicaland Information Securities still apply.
5.    Evenif you are a “Mom and Pop” you need to be PCI compliant. 85% of breaches are inLevel 4 Merchants.
6.    Completingthe PCI validation is a critical step to reduce the likelihood of a breach butit is only a periodic measurement.  Beingconstantly vigilant is vital. 

Merchant Best Practices
·       Buy and use onlyapproved Pin Entry devices at the POS
·       Buy and use onlyPA-DSS validate payment software at the POS and web shopping cart
·       Do not storesensitive are holder data on PCs or on paper
·       Use Firewalls onNetworks and PCs
·       Make surewireless router is password protected and encrypted
·       Use strongpasswords and change default passwords on hardware and software
·       Check Pindevices regularly to be sure there is no rogue software or skimming  devices installed
·       Create securitypolices and train your employees
·       Follow the PCIstandard

The Magellan™ 1100i

The Magellan™ 1100iomnidirectional presentation scanner is a high performing and versatile data collectiontool for a variety of applications.  It usesDatalogic Scanning’s latest digital imaging technology to provide intuitive andfast reading performance on 1D and 2D bar codes as well as supporting advancedfeatures like image capture and EAS tag deactivation.  A revolutionary External Read Indicator (ERI)allows the Magellan 1100i reader to integrate with other third party RFID or EASsystems for a truly “future-proof” solution. Datalogic’s Illumix™ intelligent illumination technology in the Magellan1100i reader optimizes light levels to automatically capture images and readcodes from mobile phones, PDAs, or computer display screens. Illumix technologyalso provides incredible motion tolerance, far beyond most other 2D scanningsolutions, enabling both sweep and presentation scanning techniques.  The Magellan 1100i reader’s compact size makesit the ideal solution for space-constrained environments. 

With a precise reading area, it is perfect for hands-free orhandheld scanning and helps reduce accidental misreads of items caused by straylaser scan lines - improving productivity and customer satisfaction.  Datalogic Scanning’s patented Green Spot good-readindicator improves user feedback by projecting a visual green spot onto barcodes just read.  The additional visualfeedback makes it easy to use in noisy retail applications.  The Green Spot can also be used to target asingle code from a group of codes or to position a single code inside thereading area.  A comprehensivemulti-interface set and a powerful label-editing feature allows easy integrationinto existing or new host systems.  MagellanValue Added Features such as Diagnostics Reporting, Host Download, plus optionalProductivity Index Reporting™ allow management to use data from the scanner to improvethroughput and manage maintenance.  Inaddition, each scanner supports Remote Management Systems to streamlineoperations and ongoing support across an enterprise.

The Importance of Maintenance

As an Independent Grocerwho is always looking to improve your business and cut costs it can be temptingto see  your annual maintenanceexpense on your POS system as unnecessary expense.  There are many third party service organizationstrolling the market offering plans with a significant cost reduction.  Youneed to consider the reasons it is cheaper:  the technicians are not trained by themanufacturers therefore not as highly skilled; the quality of replacement partsare not equivalent; there will be a reduced service level and dedication toissue resolution.   Using these vendorscan be a costly mistake.  So what valuedoes maintenance have for you?  Below isa breakdown of the three types of maintenance offered by STCR:

1. Hardware maintenance:

·      Contract Management
·      Asset Management
·      Remote Diagnostics
·      Call Dispatch and Coordination
·      Call Tracking
·      Call Resolution

2. Software maintenance:

·      Access to software developer support
·      Entitled to software level upgrades

3. Remote Help Desk Support:

·      24x7x365 access via phone internet and email

·      Remote diagnostics
·      Call tracking
·      Call resolution
·      Remote program upgrades
·      Answering 'how to' questions
·      Software personalization changes
·      Some setup and configuration changes
·      Tax table updates
·      Backup verification
·      Disaster recovery
·      Incident reporting
·      Closed call automatic notification
·      Satisfaction follow up call backs
·      Online Help Desk access for to open new callsand review call history

As you see the list is extensive and the added benefit isthe costs are fixed.  Without thiscoverage you run the risk of costly excessive down times and service bills onan as needed basis, upgrade software license fees, and all the other intangiblecosts of your system not performing properly. Typical to most service organizations, resources are prioritized formaintenance clients.  Don't make themistake and leave your business exposed to these unavoidable situations.  Protect your investment and know you arecovered.  If you have any questionsregarding STCR maintenance offerings speak to one of our knowledgeable SaleRepresentatives (607) 757-0181.