Articles

Oct 15
Love89
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What is PCI Compliance and Why it Matters

By Articles

The acronym PCI stands for Payment Card Industry, or more accurately PCI DSS where the latter term means ‘Data Security Standard’). The term ‘PCI Compliance’ is typically used as shorthand for the latest protocols taken by this industry to safeguard their customers’ accounts and prevent fraud.

Each new platform or device a hotel adds can potentially introduce a new point of vulnerability for a cyberattack. Without secure systems in place to protect guest’s credit card information, hotels are adding a huge amount of risk.

All it takes is one breach and a hotel can suffer a tremendous amount of financial damage. There are the short-term effects of class action lawsuits and refunds, but also the reputational harm that can dissuade future customers from booking for years to come.

Another aspect to consider is chargebacks, where guests can dispute charges on their cards. More often than not, credit card processors side with the customer and not the merchant. Due to the inherent security and verification features built into PCI-compliant technologies, the chances of a dispute costing a hotel money is reduced.

Looking at all the factors involved, you simply can’t risk leaving any cracks in your tech stack unsealed. Bolstering your company’s cybersecurity starts with a thorough analysis of all your software and hardware – and not just each merchant terminal – to ensure they are all PCI compliant.

From there, opt for contactless payment solutions that can package and encrypt (that is, tokenize) your guests’ credit card data when it is being sent to the processor or the PMS. As well, these technologies should also help to remove any points in the chain where team members or third parties can see this information to further boost PCI compliance.

This is an ongoing process and one that needs to be discussed with each new piece that’s added to the tech stack. Still, it’s a core matter of protecting your guests and your brand from harm.

Mar 13
Love1
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Hard Rock Implements TransForm

By Press Releases

March 13th, 2020 – Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Lake Tahoe has become the first area casino to provide more secure and easy credit card transactions with TransForm, the hospitality industry’s first secure cloud-based credit card authorization payment and posting platform

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Nov 09
Love3077

Treasure Island Las Vegas Deploys TransForm

By Press Releases

Treasure Island Las Vegas has partnered with Agilysys & b4, a developer and provider of cloud-based hospitality software, to deploy TransForm– the industry’s first and revolutionary online payment and posting software solution which greatly enhances the security of consumers’ credit card information.TransForm,

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Sep 14
Love4

TransForm Achieves Oracle Validated Integration to OPERA

By Press Releases

b4, a Gold level member of Oracle PartnerNetwork (OPN), announces it has completed Oracle Validated Integration of TransForm v3.1 with Oracle Hospitality OPERA 5.5. TransForm eliminates the use of credit card authorization forms with a secure and interactive platform for guests and meeting planners to make payments to hotels and then automatically posts those payments to Oracle Hospitality OPERA, therein with this two-way integration.To achieve Oracle Validated Integration, Oracle partners are required to meet a stringent set of requirements that are based on the needs and priorities of the customers. Credit card authorization forms have long been a point of aggravation for hotels because they are inconvenient, prone to human error and, most importantly, not PCI compliant. By eliminating this labor-intensive process, TransForm provides an automatic, real-time system for hotels to connect deposits with guest accounts.

“We’re excited about this new integration with Oracle Hospitality OPERA because our payment and posting solution can seamlessly post, so it can now help thousands of hotels alleviate an antiquated business practice that is not in line with current technology or security standards,” said Steve Miles, COO of b4. “TransForm increases customer convenience and satisfaction by streamlining the payment process as well as reducing costs for hotels by eliminating credit card authorization forms and the labor necessary to handle this manual process.”

“Achieving Oracle Validated Integration gives our customers confidence that the integration between TransForm and Oracle Hospitality OPERA is functionally sound and performs as tested,” said David Hicks, vice president, Worldwide ISV, OEM and Java Business Development, Oracle.  “For solutions deployed on-premises, in the cloud, or both, Oracle Validated Integration applies a rigorous technical review and test process that helps to reduce deployment risk and improves the user experience of the partner’s integrated offering.”

In addition to reservations and group payments, TransForm can also facilitate miscellaneous payments such as gift cards, lost and found payments and offer other key benefits, including:

  • Reduces PCI scope at the hotel with PCI compliance
  • Validates reservations and groups in real-time
  • Posts automatically to Oracle Hospitality OPERA
  • Lowers labor costs with hands-free process
  • Eliminates printing costs
  • Lowers transaction fees
  • Integrates with major payment gateways
  • Eliminates chargebacks via AVS Verification

About Oracle Validated Integration

Oracle Validated Integration, available through the Oracle PartnerNetwork (OPN), gives customers confidence that the integration of a complementary partner software product with an Oracle “on-premises” Application has been validated and the products work together as designed. This can help customers reduce risk, improve system implementation cycles, and provide for smoother upgrades and simpler maintenance. Oracle Validated Integration applies a rigorous technical process to review partner integrations and partners who successfully complete the program are authorized to use the “Oracle Validated Integration” logo. For more information, please visit Oracle.com at https://solutions.oracle.com/scwar/scr/AboutPartners/validated-integration/index.html

About Oracle PartnerNetwork

Oracle PartnerNetwork (OPN) is Oracle’s partner program that provides partners with a differentiated advantage to develop, sell and implement Oracle solutions. OPN offers resources to train and support specialized knowledge of Oracle’s products and solutions and has evolved to recognize Oracle’s growing product portfolio, partner base and business opportunity. Key to the latest enhancements to OPN is the ability for partners to be recognized and rewarded for their investment in Oracle Cloud. Partners engaging with Oracle will be able to differentiate their Oracle Cloud expertise and success with customers through the OPN Cloud program – an innovative program that complements existing OPN program levels with tiers of recognition and progressive benefits for partners working with Oracle Cloud. To find out more visit: http://www.oracle.com/partners.

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Oracle and Java are registered trademarks of Oracle and/or its affiliates.

Jan 23
Love75
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TransForm Integrates to Agilysys LMS

By Press Releases

b4, developer and provider of cloud-based hospitality software, has announced that its payment solution, TransForm, is now available to users of Agilysys’ industry-leading Lodging Management System® (LMS) property management system (PMS).TransForm is an interactive platform that enhances data security, enabling guests and meeting planners to make deposits and payments to hotels and resorts. TransForm eliminates credit card authorization forms, which are labor intensive for businesses, inconvenient for customers, and non-PCI compliant. By facilitating e-commerce transactions online, there is also a cost reduction for hotels. Credit card chargebacks are virtually eliminated.

“Our primary goal when developing TransForm was to protect highly sensitive payment and personal information, as well as reduce the PCI risk for the property,” said Steve Miles, COO at b4. “This product revolutionizes the end-to-end process of facilitating deposits and payments between hotels and their customers.”

“TransForm’s integration with Agilysys’ LMS is an extension of the success we’ve had using this product with our Visual One® PMS customers,” said Jim Walker, senior vice president of global revenue at Agilysys. “The combination of PCI compliance and operational efficiency is an increasingly important issue for customers. We are excited to offer TransForm to our LMS users, so they can benefit from the combined value of our two solutions to reduce costs and improve the payment process.”

LMS is recognized as one of the hospitality industry’s leading property management systems. It automates every aspect of hotel operations, including reservations and credit card processing, accounting and housekeeping, sales and catering, activities scheduling, food and beverage sales, online reservations, remote check-in, spa scheduling and more. Hotels and gaming properties worldwide rely on its flexibility and ease of use to increase productivity, maximize revenue per guest and ensure repeat business. LMS is available as an on-site or Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) solution.

Sep 16
Love89

GettaRoom enhances the booking experience

By Articles

b4 has announced the release of GettaRoom – a revolutionary innovative hotel booking platform. GettaRoom is adaptive. First of its kind, it offers the hotelier design options, rather than being stuck with any vendors’ singular booking engine design.Greg Thomson, VP of b4 Integration notes, “With GettaRoom by b4, the hotelier will have multiple design looks to create their own custom booking experience with just a few clicks. GettaRoom gives them unparalleled control to change the front-end experience at will. The result: maximizing conversion and hotel revenue.”

GettaRoom is loaded with new features to improve guest convenience and drive conversion. For example, guests can easily sign in through social media, meaning that they no longer have to create a separate guest user profile. There is an expanded administrative dashboard and extranet that makes management of the booking system quick and easy. GettaRoom is fully responsive, and works perfectly from any mobile device, not just for the guest, but for the administrator as well.

“I have had the opportunity to see GettaRoom. It is a game changer. I recommend you book a demo. You will definitely be impressed.” says Denise McNeil, Canadian Regional Director of Revenue, Newcastle Hotels and Resorts.

Aug 18
Love89

b4 Upgrades PCI Compliance

By Articles

b4 announces that it has completed all the requirements of the latest PCI DSS, version 3.0, well ahead of the year-end compliance requirement.
“Compliance with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) means that your systems are secure, and customers can trust you with their sensitive payment card information,”said Greg Thomson VP of Integrations. “Compliance improves your reputation with acquirers and payment brands — the partners you need in order to do business. We fully maintain our compliance to the latest PCI DSS 3.0 standard.”

Compliance with data security standards is a core standard of any financial transaction, while failure to comply can have serious and long-term negative consequences.

To combat security breaches, there is a mandate to update the standards every 36 months, which focus on some of the most frequently seen risks that lead to incidents of cardholder data compromise providing added flexibility on ways to meet the requirements. For more information on PCI Compliance Standards please visit pcisecuritystandards.org