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A group of payments industry consultants and executives has formed a trade association devoted to the "growth, development, and market adoption of Internet-based debit transactions and mobile-payment methods that meet or exceed the security standards for PIN-debit card-present payments," CardLine sister publication ATM&Debit News has learned. The Secure Remote Payment Council insists it will not back one product over another. Instead, it will have a "laser focus" on the security of payments conducted online with PIN-debit cards and with mobile-based products, says Paul Tomasofsky, president of Montvale, N.J.-based Two Sparrows Consulting. Tomasofsky also is a member of the council's steering committee. As Internet PIN-debit products such as Acculynk Inc.'s PaySecure continue to gain traction in the marketplace, the council's steering committee members believe a standard security-authentication process is needed regardless of the technology used to enable such card-not-present payments. The organization will not be a standards-making body such as the Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council but instead will promote a set of best practices for companies that enable remote payments. The details for various technologies used for Internet debit and mobile-based products may be getting in the way of concentrating on the security aspect of such transactions, says Mike Keresman, CEO, president and chairman of Mentor, Ohio-based Commercial Commerce Corp., which specializes in enabling authenticated payments, secure transactions and alternative payment brands for both e-commerce and mobile payments. "You have significant debit traction in the United States and abroad, and no one seems to be addressing remote payments and making them safe [regardless] of the technology," says Keresman, who also is a member of the council's steering committee. Alternative payments such as PayPal Inc. and Google Checkout that enable consumers to use debit cards to complete online transactions also need to be taken into account, Keresman says. "You do have these payment methods out there that are using some form or credit or debit, and we're looking at the bigger picture of how to make payments safe," Keresman adds.
