co-locations

PCI DSS for DATA CENTERS | It’s only going to become MORE of a Requirement

I attended a recent compliance conference for data centers and the phrase that kept coming up was PCI DSS. That’s right, the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards, simply known as PCI DSS to millions, is spreading like a virus throughout the business community. Merchants were the first set of businesses to be hit with the compliance mandate, quickly followed by “service providers” that also “process, store, and transmit” cardholder data or transaction data.

Data centers, co-locations, and managed service entities are now quickly getting up to speed with PCI DSS compliance. These types of businesses will fall under the realm of a “service provider”, thus most will more than likely “have to” go through an actual on-site PCI DSS assessment by a Qualified Security Assessor, known as a QSA. The real big news about PCI DSS and data centers is not so much that they are having to become compliant, but what truly is the “scope” of the assessment. I’ll cover that in subsequent blogs, but for now, just be aware of the growing importance of PCI DSS compliance for data centers, co-location, and managed service entities.

To learn more about PCI DSS compliance, visit the official PCI Resource Guide.

SAS 70 Audits & Data Centers | Tips on Preparing for the Audit

Today’s data centers and managed services providers are complex businesses, providing customers with a wide array of services. As such, SAS 70 audits have become the standard compliance audit for assessing internal controls for data centers and managed services. But buyer beware, not all SAS 70 audits are the same when being conducted on data centers and managed service providers. So, what’s the scope, you say? Well, generally speaking a good quality SAS 70 audit process and its subsequent report should include the following areas for considerations of controls:

1. Executive Management/Strategic Management Drivers
2. Human Resources
3. Quality Assurance Activities
3. Client Contract Processes
4. Technical Client Provisioning Processes and Activities
5. Change Management
6. Incident Management
7. Logical Security
8. Network Security
9. Shipping and Receiving Management
10. Physical Security
11. Environmental Security

Any SAS 70 conducted on data centers, managed services providers and co-locations entities that encompass the following above referenced areas can be considered a quality audit and report, at least in terms of scope. It’s then up to the CPA firm conducting the audit to actually perform testing for these above referenced areas, but that’s a whole other topic of discussion for a later date.

To learn more about SAS 70 audits, visit the official SAS 70 Resource Guide.
To learn more about PCI DSS assessments, visit the Payment Card Industry (PCI) Resource Guide.