Payment Processor Achieves PCI DSS 4.0 with SigmaSRC

A payment processing company achieved and maintains PCI DSS 4.0 compliance with 80% reduction in audit preparation time.

Company Overview

Industry: Payment Processing / FinTech Size: 200 employees Transaction Volume: 50M+ transactions annually Challenge: PCI DSS 4.0 compliance and maintenance

The Challenge

Situation

This payment processing company handles over 50 million card transactions annually for thousands of merchants. PCI DSS compliance is not optional—it's existential. With PCI DSS 4.0's new requirements approaching, they needed to upgrade their compliance program.

Pain Points

PCI DSS 4.0 Transition:

  • New requirements approaching March 2025
  • Significant changes from v3.2.1
  • Limited understanding of new requirements
  • Technical gaps identified

Manual Compliance Burden:

  • 400+ hours annually on audit prep
  • Spreadsheet-based evidence tracking
  • Last-minute evidence scrambles
  • QSA frustration with documentation

Multi-Location Complexity:

  • Multiple data centers
  • Various processing environments
  • Different system types
  • Segmentation verification challenging

Business Impact

  • Significant staff time consumed by compliance
  • Risk of audit findings affecting business
  • Delayed feature releases for compliance work
  • Stress before every annual assessment

The Solution

Why SigmaSRC?

The company selected SigmaSRC for:

  1. PCI DSS 4.0 Coverage - Complete mapping of new requirements
  2. Payment Industry Expertise - Understanding of payment processing
  3. Continuous Monitoring - Real-time compliance verification
  4. Evidence Automation - Automated collection and organization
  5. Multi-Environment Support - Handle complex infrastructure
  6. QSA Collaboration - Efficient auditor interaction

Implementation

Phase 1: Foundation (Weeks 1-4)

  • Complete environment mapping
  • Cardholder data flow documentation
  • Integration deployment:
    • Network infrastructure (Palo Alto)
    • Cloud environments (AWS)
    • Vulnerability scanning (Qualys)
    • SIEM (Splunk)
    • Identity management (Ping)
    • Ticketing (ServiceNow)

Phase 2: Gap Assessment (Weeks 5-8)

  • PCI DSS 4.0 gap analysis
  • v3.2.1 to v4.0 delta assessment
  • Future-dated requirements identification
  • Remediation planning

Phase 3: Remediation (Months 3-6)

  • Technical gaps addressed
  • New v4.0 controls implemented
  • Documentation updated
  • Evidence collection automated

Phase 4: Continuous Compliance (Ongoing)

  • Real-time monitoring active
  • Continuous evidence collection
  • Quarterly internal reviews
  • Annual QSA assessment

The Results

Compliance Achievements

Metric Before SigmaSRC After SigmaSRC
Audit Prep Time 400+ hours 80 hours
Evidence Automation 20% 90%
Compliance Visibility Monthly Real-time
Time to Evidence Request Days Minutes
Audit Findings 3-5 annually 0

Business Outcomes

PCI DSS 4.0 Compliant Successfully achieved PCI DSS 4.0 compliance ahead of mandatory deadline.

80% Reduction in Audit Prep Team now spends 80% less time preparing for annual assessment.

Zero Audit Findings First assessment with SigmaSRC resulted in zero findings.

Continuous Compliance Achieved Moved from point-in-time to continuous compliance posture.

Key Capabilities Used

PCI DSS 4.0 Complete Mapping

  • All 12 requirements covered
  • Sub-requirements detailed
  • Testing procedures documented
  • Guidance incorporated

Network Segmentation Verification

  • Segmentation documentation
  • Quarterly validation support
  • Network diagram integration
  • Penetration test tracking

Vulnerability Management

  • Vulnerability scan integration
  • Compliance reporting
  • Remediation tracking
  • Critical/high prioritization

Cardholder Data Discovery

  • Data flow documentation
  • Storage location tracking
  • Transmission path mapping
  • Encryption verification

Evidence Automation

  • Configuration evidence collected
  • Log samples automated
  • Policy acknowledgments tracked
  • Training records maintained

PCI DSS 4.0 Specific Achievements

Requirement 3: Protect Stored Account Data

  • Disk encryption controls documented
  • Cryptographic key management tracked
  • Data retention automated
  • Secure deletion verified

Requirement 6: Develop Secure Systems

  • Payment page script inventory maintained
  • Change detection implemented
  • WAF configuration monitored
  • Code review evidence collected

Requirement 8: Identify Users

  • MFA for all CDE access verified
  • Password policies monitored
  • Service account management tracked
  • Authentication logging confirmed

Requirement 11: Test Security

  • Penetration testing tracked
  • Vulnerability scan results collected
  • Payment page monitoring implemented
  • Segmentation testing documented

Requirement 12: Security Policies

  • Policy management centralized
  • Risk assessment automated
  • Security awareness tracked
  • Incident response documented

Technical Implementation

Network Security Monitoring

  • Firewall rule reviews automated
  • Network segmentation verified
  • IDS/IPS alerts collected
  • Traffic analysis integrated

Encryption Management

  • TLS configuration monitored
  • Key management documented
  • Encryption at rest verified
  • Cryptographic inventory maintained

Access Control Monitoring

  • Access reviews automated
  • Privileged access tracked
  • MFA verification continuous
  • Account lifecycle managed

Change Management

  • Change tickets collected
  • Approval workflows tracked
  • Emergency changes documented
  • Rollback procedures verified

Testimonial

"PCI compliance used to dominate our calendar. Months of preparation, weekends before assessments, always something missing. SigmaSRC changed everything. We now have continuous visibility, and our QSA actually complimented our documentation for the first time ever. The v4.0 transition was smooth because we could see exactly what needed to change."

— Chief Information Security Officer

Lessons Learned

Success Factors

  1. Early v4.0 Planning - Started transition well before deadline
  2. Automation Investment - Prioritized integration depth
  3. QSA Collaboration - Involved QSA in platform selection
  4. Team Training - Invested in platform knowledge
  5. Continuous Mindset - Shifted from annual to continuous

Recommendations for Payment Companies

  • Start PCI DSS 4.0 transition now if not complete
  • Prioritize future-dated requirements (March 2025)
  • Automate evidence collection for all recurring requirements
  • Use continuous monitoring to prevent compliance drift
  • Involve your QSA in compliance platform discussions

About SigmaSRC for Financial Services

SigmaSRC helps financial services organizations:

  • Achieve PCI DSS Compliance - v4.0 and beyond
  • Reduce Audit Burden - Automated evidence collection
  • Maintain Continuous Compliance - Real-time monitoring
  • Support QSA Assessments - Efficient auditor collaboration
  • Manage Multiple Frameworks - PCI, SOX, SOC 2 together

Learn More About Financial Services Solutions

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