The PCI SSC offers a range of training and certification programs to support businesses in their payment security efforts. To help support the Council’s mission to educate and meet the needs of payment industry professionals, PCI SSC has recently launched a digital badging program. We talk with Travis Powell, Director of Training Programs, to learn more about this new program.
Can you tell me about the new digital badging program?
Travis Powell: Digital badging is a way to recognize individual achievements and industry certifications. Most professionals may already have been issued these types of badges through other industry certification bodies such as ISC2, ISACA or even VMWare. Digital badging is a trusted source by many industry organizations.
What are the benefits to promoting an earned badge?
Travis Powell: Digital badging provides a single, trusted third-party validation of an individual’s achievements. Digital badges are shareable on several digital platforms, they can be embedded into email signatures, shared on social media platforms such as LinkedIn and they can also be used as part of a CV to show industry recognition in particular programs. Ultimately, badging offers the badge earners a method of promoting themselves across various industries to their individual achievements and certifications that they have obtained.
Who qualifies for digital badges?
Travis Powell: PCI SSC digital badges are available to payment industry professionals who have attended official PCI SSC training and have met specific industry qualifications. The following programs will have digital badges available for qualified professionals:
- 3DS Assessor
- Internal Security Assessor (ISA)
- Point to Point Encryption (P2PE) Assessor
- Point-to-Point Encryption Qualified Security Assessor (P2PE QSA)
- PCI Forensic Investigator (PFI)
- Qualified PIN Assessor (QPA)
- Qualified Security Assessor (QSA)
- Secure Software Assessor (SSA)
- Secure Software Lifecycle (Secure SLC) Assessor
- PCI Professional (PCIP)
We are currently beginning the rollout of the PCI SSC digital badging platform. The program is launching with the Payment Card Industry Professional (PCIP) program in May and then rolling out to additional programs in in the coming months.
How can qualified stakeholders receive their digital badge?
Travis Powell: The first step is to successfully complete an official PCI SSC certification training program. Once complete you must opt-in to the digital badging program by performing the following steps:
- Login to the PCI SSC Portal
- Select the top menu for My Account and then click on Code of Conduct
- At the bottom of the Code of Conduct attestation you will see a check box that allows you to opt-in to receive PCI SSC digital badges
