Affinity Internet Introduces Cutting-Edge Web Security Services for eCommerce Customers

August 2, 2006; 09:17 AM
Affinity Internet, a leading Web site, eCommerce and online-marketing service provider for Web professionals and small businesses, announced that it will now offer two services designed to meet and exceed current industry compliance standards for online credit card usage: ScanAlert PCI Certification and ScanAlert HACKER SAFE(R). PCI Compliance is an industry requirement for businesses of any size that accept credit card payments online.

"At Affinity, we understand the importance of providing our users with easily accessible and effective solutions for their eCommerce needs," said Jim Collins, CEO, Affinity Internet. "Our goal is to help our small business owners navigate the ever changing scope of the Internet as efficiently as possible -- a task that can be difficult since most small business owners lack the resources available to their large enterprise counterparts."

One such change is the recent regulations implemented by credit card processing services, such as VISA CISP, which make Certification to the PCI standard a requirement for all Web sites accepting credit cards. Fines for noncompliance can reach up to $500,000 per incident and lead to further restrictions on the merchant. Under these regulations, in the event of a security breach, credit card companies can punish violations from small- and medium-sized businesses in the same manner as large corporations.

"Most small businesses simply can't afford these penalties," noted Collins. "Yet, despite these strict regulations, our recent survey of ValueWeb users showed that 75 percent of our eCommerce merchants were unaware of their compliance status. Clearly this is a problem we are looking to solve for our customers."

In the past, obtaining PCI Certification for online businesses could cost thousands of dollars. Affinity Internet is now offering it free to professional hosting users and for the low cost of $69/month for business and commerce users. Merchants can also subscribe to ScanAlert's premium HACKER SAFE(R) service, starting at an additional $19.99/month.

"Until now, once a small business became aware of compliance regulations, they often found they couldn't afford to meet the industry standards," noted Michael Ayers, Director of Channel Sales, ScanAlert. "We are thrilled to be partnering with Affinity to offer this technology at an affordable price for small- and medium-sized businesses."

HACKER SAFE is the world's most widely adopted eCommerce security standard. ScanAlert only allows the certification mark to appear on sites that pass comprehensive daily security audits of eCommerce infrastructure. As long as a site remains secure, ScanAlert continually serves a HACKER SAFE certification mark directly to the retailer's Web site from ScanAlert's network. In scientific testing by more than 400 retailers, including PETCO, Yankee Candle and Warner Brothers, HACKER SAFE certification increased sales conversion an average of 14%.

About Affinity Internet

Affinity Internet is committed to empowering its customers to write their own Internet success stories. The company provides more than 180,000 Web professionals and small businesses the tools to develop, maintain, market and support their Web presence, making the Internet a useful and relevant part of their businesses. Affinity's brands include: ValueWeb, for Web design, eCommerce hosting and online marketing solutions, and Gate.com, the cutting-edge UNIX and Windows Web-hosting service. Affinity's co-brand and private-label partner programs enable leading service providers and Internet brands to extend their value proposition to include feature-rich Web site, eCommerce and online marketing services and applications.

Affinity's services are supported by its customer service "success guides" -- knowledgeable consultants with a passion for serving small businesses and a dedication to ensuring their growth and success.

ScanAlert PCI Certification and ScanAlert HACKER SAFE products are available through Affinity Internet's ValueWeb brand. Visit www.valueweb.com for further information.

ScanAlert, Inc.

Headquartered in Napa, Calif., ScanAlert is the world's largest Web site security certification company, protecting over 70,000 Web sites in 40 countries through the HACKER SAFE certification program. Over 40% of the Internet Retailer Top 500 use HACKER SAFE certification to build the trust that builds their business. ScanAlert also provides co-branded security services on behalf of hundreds of organizations such as Visa International and CyberSource. For more information, please visit www.scanalert.com.