Manama: Arab Financial Services (AFS), the MEA region’s leading payment solutions provider and FinTech enabler, has been awarded the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards (PCI DSS v3.2.1) certification by SISA Information Security WLL, the Middle East’s leading Qualified Security Assessor and provider of PCI-validated solutions. AFS’ latest certification level is for achieving compliance on one of the most stringent security standards from the Payment Security Standards Council.
PCI DSS compliance standards aim to increase payments security and include a complex set of requirements for organizations to implement different controls to minimize risk. This latest certification highlights the security of AFS’s customer data and reinforces the trusted technology and payments solutions it provides the financial sector to enable seamless transactions across multiple payments channels around the world.
“PCI DSS compliance underscores AFS’ commitment to not only providing innovative payment solutions, but continually striving for the most secure solutions for our partners and their customers across the globe. We are dedicated to attaining the latest possible certifications for our products and services. As such, this certificate is a strong indicator that AFS consistently has its partners’ interest at the core of our business and is committed to securing customer information as well as maintaining a safe and secure environment for customer data,” B Chandrasekhar, Chief Executive Officer of AFS, said.
“Achieving the PCI DSS v3.2.1 compliance is a testament to AFS’s commitment to maintaining a secure cardholder data environment. This certification further demonstrates the safety of cardholder data accessed, processed, and simultaneously providing secure and reliable data security for AFS’s clients and partners. We appreciate AFS’s commitment towards ‘security and not just compliance’ audit philosophy of SISA and marching towards secure electronic and digital banking goals,” Dharshan Shanthamurthy, SISA Information Security Worldwide’s CEO and Founder, said.
AFS serves over 75 clients across the financ,ial sector in more than 21 countries. It is owned by 39 banks and financial institutions and regulated by the Central Bank of Bahrain. The company offers innovative and end-to-end payment services and solutions that span card processing, merchant acquiring, FinTech and a state-of-the-art value-added services suite. AFS has offices and data centers in Bahrain, UAE and Oman, and was the first processor in the region to become Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) 3.2 certified. Recipient of several global awards, AFS has most recently been recognized as of ‘The Most Innovative FinTech Solution Provider 2018’ at the GCC Enterprise Awards 2018 and ‘Best Payment Service Provider – Bahrain 2017’ by Global Banking and Finance Review.
SISA is the region’s #1 Payment Security Specialists firm having vast expertise in Payments security space. SISA is an authorized assessor for various Payments standards and listed as a PCI QSA, PCI ASV, PA-QSA, P2PE-QSA, PCI PFI and VISA Approved PCI PIN Security Assessor.
