Praetorian Secure earns Qualified Security Assessor company designation from PCI SSC

May 1, 2012 - PRLog -- Davison, MI - Praetorian Secure, LLC, has become certified by the Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council (PCI SSC) as a Qualified Security Assessor (PCI QSA) company. In accordance with the PCI Data Security Standard (PCI DSS), the PCI QSA designation allows Praetorian Secure to assess and validate the security of payment card data environments for merchants, service providers, credit card processors, banking and financial institutions.  Praetorian Secure went through a comprehensive process of becoming a Qualified Security Assessor that included training & testing, establishing a dedicated quality assurance program for assessments and validation, demonstrating proper business procedures, and proving Praetorian Secure has extensive expertise in the fields of IT Security and Regulatory compliance.

Praetorian Secure chose to become a certified PCI QSA firm as the need for experienced information assurance and security professionals are in demand due to rising fraudulent activities pertaining to card data.  For its clients in need of PCI DSS validation, Praetorian Secure will rely on its many years of assessment experience and certification to follow the PCI QSA validation requirements by assessing card holder data environments, network segmentation, wireless and mobile computing, third party participation, controls, and submitting proper documentation.

“We felt it was a natural fit to become a QSA,” said Brent Bernard, CEO of Praetorian Secure.  Bernard added, “With a background in securing Department of Defense systems and data, integrating PCI into our existing compliance offerings strengthens and extends that level of dedication to our clients, helps them protect their systems better, and makes it difficult for card holder data to end up in the wrong hands.”

Per PCI SSC, Praetorian Secure will verify all merchant or service provider technical information, provide support and guidance during the compliance process, perform validation at the client’s site, confirm the standard has been met, and produce final report documents to both the PCI SSC and each major card brand. The PCI SSC and development of the Data Security Standard was established by the founding members (American Express, Discover, JCB, MasterCard, and Visa).  Each major card brands requires adherence to the PCI DSS standard for any entity that processes, stores or transmits cardholder data. The major card brands developed the PCI DSS to control and minimize vulnerabilities that can be found in point-of-sale devices, personal computers or servers, wireless hotspots, e-commerce/web shopping applications, paper-based storage systems, and transmissions between merchants, service providers and acquiring financial institutions.

Praetorian Secure’s COO Mike Ross stated, “We know the proliferation of cyber-terrorism, hactivism, and data theft is on the rise, but we believe it can be countered by incorporating a security framework with layers of established governance, risk management and compliance.” In regards to any card data environment, Ross added, “Praetorian Secure will promote a prioritized PCI approach as it’s an important building block in the foundation of compliance and card data protection.  In addition, this approach also streamlines the PCI DSS validation process regardless if you self-assess or need a third party PCI DSS validation.”

About Praetorian Secure, LLC
Praetorian Secure delivers proven solutions to ensure our customers' most valued information and assets meet the highest standards for confidentiality, integrity, and availability.  As IT Security and Regulatory compliance experts serving many commercial markets and government agencies, Praetorian Secure provides professional services including security framework programs, vulnerability audits & assessments, security engineering, application security, and installation and configuration of vulnerability management software and hardware tools.  Headquartered in Davison, Michigan, Praetorian Secure, LLC, is a Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB).  For more information on Praetorian Secure, LLC, please visit www.praetoriansecure.com