ATLANTA — Bluefin Payment Systems has announced a new partnership with EchoSat Inc., a leading provider of payments security and redundancy for retail outlets in many vertical markets, and managed network and firewall services to protect point-of-sale (POS) systems from security breaches.

The partnership will further enhance data security for EchoSat clients through the implementation of Bluefin’s Decryptx PCI-validated Point-to-Point Encryption (P2PE) service, which will provide additional protection by encrypting payment data directly at the point of interface (POI).

Bluefin became the first North American PCI-validated P2PE solution provider in March 2014. PCI-validated P2PE secures card transactions by encrypting all data within a PCI-approved point of entry swipe or keypad device, preventing clear-text cardholder data from being available in the device or the merchant’s system where it could be exposed to malware. Bluefin’s Decryptx Decryption as a Service (DaaS) product provides all of the security of Bluefin’s PCI-validated P2PE solution suite with no change to a merchant’s processing or acquiring relationship.

“As the FBI and other agencies warn that criminals are developing new strains of point-of-sale malware which can defeat standard security precautions, it is more important than ever that companies like EchoSat provide their clients the best data security available,” said John M. Perry, CEO of Bluefin. “There is an increasing awareness that consumer cardholder data will never be fully secure without PCI-validated P2PE. We congratulate EchoSat on being on the cutting edge of payment card security, and are delighted that they have chosen Bluefin and Decryptx as a means for their clients to secure cardholder data and reduce PCI scope.”

EchoSat and Bluefin both take pride in the fact that their security solutions are 100% PCI compliant. Bluefin is a Participating Organization (PO) of the PCI Council and a validated Level 1 PCI DSS Compliant Service Provider. Bluefin chief innovation officer Ruston Miles assisted with the development of the recent updated P2PE standard, as part of an industry feedback group for PCI SSC.

“EchoSat has a responsibility to our many clients to provide the best possible protection for both their networks and their reputations,” said Mark Carl, EchoSat CEO. “Bluefin’s P2PE solution is the best there is. It is secure, reliable, cost effective and tried-and-tested. Decryptx will become an essential tool in ensuring that our clients’ systems are secure. When reviewing P2PE providers, it was critical for us to find a P2PE solution that was validated by the PCI SSC. Other vendors in our space offer P2PE solutions that are not validated, and we believe the Decryptx solution will give us a competitive advantage on that front.”

Through the partnership, EchoSat clients will have access to PCI-validated P2PE on the EchoSat SPG and PaySafe SPG platforms, with Bluefin providing the devices, key injection, shipping and chain of custody for EchoSat clients.

Bluefin Payment Systems is a leading provider of secure payment technology for independent software vendors (ISVs), enterprises, retailers, financial institutions and small- to medium-sized businesses worldwide. Bluefin’s proprietary PayConex platform features PCI-validated Point-to-Point Encryption (P2PE), the QuickSwipe mobile POS system, tokenization, transparent redirect and more.

Bluefin is a participating organization of the PCI Security Standards Council (SSC) and is based in Atlanta.

Lexington, Ore.-based EchoSat provides payments security and redundancy for retail outlets in many vertical markets, as well as managed network and firewall services to protect POS systems from security breaches. EchoSat is a Level 1 compliant PCI-DSS Service Provider and has developed a powerful set of PCI-DSS compliant data security and network control systems designed to ensure critical data is protected and reliably delivered. These products are geographically redundant to maximize availability. EchoSat currently facilitates more than 120 million electronic payment transactions per month at more than 20,000 retail sites across North America.