[TECH]PCI SSC Security Requirements for Fintech Apps

Hello, this is LIAPP TEAM. 

The security issue of Fintech apps is emerging as a hot topic in various fields worldwide. Expectations for Fintech apps are rising as financial services become more advanced and payments in non-financial IT sectors are active. Still, the frequency of personal information leakage accidents is also increasing. Therefore, to make lesser concerns about the exposure of personal information of Fintech app users, Fintech companies should do their best to strengthen security with safety as collateral, away from reckless evasion of responsibility.

For this reason, the payment card industry data security standard (PCI-DSS, Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard) is emerging as a security standard for Fintech companies. Five multinational card payment brands, VISA, MasterCard, American Express, DISCOVER, and JCB International, have established the Payment Card Industry Security Standards Committee (Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council, hereafter PCI SSC).

Their mission is to protect personal information related to payment and provide technical requirements for protecting cardholders' data and sensitive personal information data.

4.2 Create server-side controls and report unauthorized access

This recommendation is for developing a comprehensive payment authorization solution that can detect, report, and disconnect unauthorized access attempts or abnormal behavior to mobile apps. This is the LIAPP Auth function of LIAPP, which blocks bypass connections directly to the app server, and can be set up to prevent the app from running through an abnormal path. 

4.3 Prevent escalation of privileges

It is recommended to block routing, run apps on escaped devices, and increase security by sending alarms or warning messages if a risk is detected. However, mobile hacking is primarily caused by not blocking unauthorized connections. LIAPP can detect unauthorized access from routing, rooted or jailbroken devices, OS-tampered devices, and virtual machines, sending out alarms and strongly blocking app execution and access. 

4.10 Protect against known vulnerabilities

It recommends patching mobile devices and apps to ensure they are always up to date. As a result, LIAPP can strongly block known hacking techniques and directly register hacking tools to address the latest security vulnerabilities.
LIAPP's premium plans; LIAPP Enterprise and LIAPP For Game provide servers and monitoring dashboards dedicated to customers, enabling real-time reporting of the number of app users, hacking incidence, and hacking types. In addition, users can immediately change the on/off button to enable features such as anti-debugging, integrity modulation detection, virtual machine detection, hacking tool detection, and administrator rights detection. 

Compliance with PCI SSC security regulations is not just about preventing privacy leaks. In addition, it increases the reliability of Fintech apps, improving its reputation for Fintech services. As mobile payments through Fintech apps gradually play a central role in the payment industry, compliance with related regulations is now becoming an essential factor. Compliance with PCI SSC may initially seem complicated, but mobile security services such as LIAPP make it easier and simpler to apply security features.

If you've already released or are preparing for a Fintech app, why don't you take this opportunity to strengthen your mobile app security policy with LIAPP? About a month before the app's launch, LIAPP team recommends a schedule to distribute it to the market by strengthening security in advance. We hope that it will become a Fintech app service that runs fast in the global market with LIAPP in the future.