allpay, a leading UK payment specialist, has completed the roll-out of Call Masking to Newydd Housing Association. Based in North Cardiff, Newydd Housing Association now securely accepts regular rental payments from around 6,000 tenants, occupying around 3,000 affordable homes in the regions of: Powys, Cardiff, the Vale of Glamorgan, Cynon Taff and Rhondda.
Call Masking has been developed by contact centre and PCI payment specialist Eckoh, and is supplied to the Government sector by allpay, to provide an economical solution to PCI DSS compliance. The system now enables customers to key credit or debit card details securely into their phone, in line with PCI DSS regulations.
Bill Barker, customer services officer Newydd Housing Association explains:
“We have used allpay’s Callpay solution to take rental payments for some years. However, with changes to the Data Protection regulations, we were looking for more protection for our customers and staff and needed to upgrade to a more compliant solution.
“For a not-for-profit organisation like Newydd Housing Association, the cost and complexity of becoming a Level One PCI Service Provider was prohibitive. However, the ‘add-on’ Call Masking option provided by allpay and Eckoh has proved an economical and efficient answer, with Eckoh taking all responsibility for PCI DSS compliance.”
Barker continues:
“Previously, callers would read out the ‘long card number’ on their credit or debit cards while staff paused and resumed call recordings. This was secure up to a point, however, we also wanted to remove any risk of tenants being overheard if they were in a public place or the chance of any human error while staff entered details.
“As well as masking card numbers, the new system removes the need to pause and resume calls, enabling our staff and customers to keep in contact for the duration of the call. Calls are still recorded while users key in their card details, but their card information is not captured so the entire call can be recorded, resulting in a better overall customer experience and reduced call handling times. Our tenants have been particularly positive about the change as they ‘feel more secure’.
Barker confirms:
“We have also been impressed by the rapid speed of implementation. Within a few weeks the system was up and running and training to use the two integration screens was very straightforward.”
Tony Porter, head of global marketing, Eckoh explains:
“Crime targeting ‘card not present’ transactions is growing fast and criminals are increasingly turning their attention to contact centres. With our system, only the first six and last four digits of the card number and expiry date are displayed to the agent, all other numbers are masked on the screen. The caller and agent can speak throughout the process, so the agent can delete individual characters or refresh the fields if the customer makes a mistake. The DTMF (‘dual-tone multi frequency’) tones entered by the customer on their phone are replaced by flat tones before they enter the contact centre environment, meaning calls can still be recorded with no data protection issues. We have supplied our solution through allpay for more than two years and it now securely processes hundreds of thousands of calls a year on behalf of Housing Associations across the UK.”
Nick Peplow, bill payments director, allpay confirms:
“Our innovative partnership with Eckoh has resulted in a simple, secure and reliable solution for our clients in the Government and Housing sectors. Our two companies have a similar client-centred ethos and our customers now benefit from the secure and compliant payment solutions we offer.”
For further information please visit: www.allpay.net