'Cyberattack on EasyJet will put consumer confidence to the test' warns PCI Pal

With news emerging that EasyJet has been the subject of a sophisticated cyber-security attack affecting around nine million passengers – including 2,200 where credit card data was potentially accessed - PCI Pal® is urging firms to step-up protection with de-scoping payment security technologies to halt hackers in their attempts at accessing highly-prized payment card data.

Research* conducted by PCI Pal in late 2018 found that 41% of UK consumers will never return to a brand or business following a security breach or hack. A further 44% said they would stop spending ‘for several months’ in the immediate aftermath of a security breach or hack, representing significant potential losses of future revenue.

“Businesses and individuals are facing enough hardship at the moment with the fall-out from the pandemic, so this news will add a further blow not only to EasyJet, but to those customers potentially caught-up in this security breach,” said Geoff Forsyth, Chief Information Security Officer of PCI Pal.

“Business can avoid storing customer card data on their internal systems by using de-scoping technologies, particularly for payments handled in contact centres. Customers’ payment information never enters the enterprise, therefore removing the associated risks; the payment data cannot be compromised if it’s not stored in the first place. Sadly, the fall-out from attacks like this are significant, not only from the financial penalties that could be imposed, but also from consumers’ overall confidence in the brand, both now and in the long term.”

PCI Pal secures cardholder-not-present payments for some of the largest companies in a range of markets, including retail, logistics, financial services, public sector and utilities.

For more information on PCI Pal visit www.pcipal.com or call +44 207 030 3770.



Notes to Editors:

* PCI Pal conducted market research through Atomik Research in November 2018, surveying 2,002 consumers across the United Kingdom aged between 18 and 65 years with annual incomes in excess of £20,000 per annum to uncover customer service preferences and security concerns when sharing personal information online and over the telephone. Atomik Research is an independent creative market research agency that employs MRS-certified researchers and abides to MRS code.

About PCI Pal:
PCI Pal® is the global provider of secure payment solutions. PCI Pal’s cloud platform empowers organisations to take payments securely without bringing their environments into scope of PCI DSS and other card payment data security rules and regulations.

With the entire product portfolio served from PCI Pal’s cloud environment, integrations with existing telephony, payment, and desktop environments are simple and light-touch, ensuring no degradation of service while achieving security and compliance.

PCI Pal has offices in London, Ipswich (UK) and Charlotte NC (USA). For more information visit www.pcipal.com or follow the team on Twitter: https://twitter.com/PCIPAL

Editor’s Contact:
Peppa Sheridan
Peptalk Communications
+ 44 (0)1787 313822 // peppa@peptalkpr.co.uk