BlueStar Trains U.S. Sales & Marketing Force in Cardholder Data Security Standards

BlueStar, the leading global innovator in solutions-based distribution for Auto ID, Point-of-Sale, Mobility, RFID, and Security products, announced it has completed training for its entire U.S. sales and marketing staff in Payment Card Industry (PCI) compliance. By producing a comprehensive two-day educational event, BlueStar has ensured that its representatives are updated on the highest level of credit card data security standards, and that it is leading the way in helping its value-added-resellers achieve optimum security compliance.



BlueStar assembled the event based on the PCI Data Security Standard. The PCI Security Standards Council created the standard as part of its mission to enhance payment account data security. The PCI Security Standards Council was founded by American Express, Discover Financial Services, JCB International, MasterCard Worldwide, and Visa. Every system component that a merchant uses when completing a credit card transaction is required to be PCI compliant.



"Meeting PCI compliance standards continues to be an important topic among our partners," says Jason Firment, Director of Point-of-Sale at BlueStar. "It is essential that BlueStar continues to provide valuable input that will help our resellers make the right decisions for their business. This is why we conducted the training and testing for our entire U.S. sales and marketing teams and require them to pass an internal exam on PCI compliance."



Guest speaker Joe Finizio, President of the Retail Solutions Providers Association (RSPA), kicked off the event with a presentation on the effects of PCI compliance on the reseller industry and credit card services.



"The RSPA provides facts surrounding PCI compliance to not only our members but the entire industry," says Finizio. "As such, we are very impressed with BlueStar's initiative to inform and educate their team about the importance of PCI data security compliance. BlueStar's PCI seminar was both informative and a first class event that will benefit their channel partners and their customers."



BlueStar's two-day education event took place on Friday, March 19 and Saturday, March 20. Expert instructors from Verifone, Motorola, PrehKeyTec, pcAmerica, Intuit, and Merchant Warehouse led the comprehensive training. The sessions provided an overview of the compliance standards for various market segments with detailed descriptions of what the vendors had done to achieve compliance. Topics included pin pad signature capture, security compliance hardware and software, payment processing and a subject overview in key security related areas. Manufacturer compliance hardware and software solutions were also demonstrated.



The company continues to commit itself to leading the way in PCI compliance while working with its value-added reseller partners on collaborative solutions that help improve industry standards and bring better security to consumers. Industry partners interested in learning more about PCI compliance and the manufacturer compliant products should visitwww.bluestarinc.com/pci.



About BlueStar



BlueStar is the leading global distributor of solutions-based ADC, Mobility, Point-of-Sale, RFID, and Security technologies. BlueStar works exclusively with value-added resellers, providing them with complete solutions and business development support. The company brings unequaled expertise to the market, offers award-winning technical support, and is an authorized service center for a growing number of manufacturers. For more information about BlueStar value-adds for VARS and independent software developers, please contact a BlueStar Account Executive at 800-354-9776 or visit www.bluestarinc.com.