The move is a significant one for Trusteer as, whilst many people will be aware of the web browser security specialist from its free-to-customers Rapport browser add-in – now downloaded by approaching 24 million e-banking users – the firm's commercial operation is quietly expanding in parallel, Infosecurity notes.
First Data operates that Star ATM network in the US, as well as offering card processing services to large number of North American firms.
The company entered the Irish market in 2009 with a joint venture with Allied Irish Banks - AIB Merchant Services – and also acquired ICICI Bank's merchant services business a year later. The processing platforms maintained by First Data in the US and globally include Cardnet, Envoy, Omaha and BuyPass.
Under the deal between the two firms, First Data will refer Trusteer to its financial institution clients as a preferred solution provider for risk mitigation and to help enhance financial institution compliance with the new – and existing - FFIEC guidance on internet banking security.
Trusteer says its can now be used as part of a financial institution’s layered security program - which is required by the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC) upcoming internet authentication guidelines which start in January of next year.
Mickey Boodaei, Trusteer's CEO, says that financial institutions are recognising that criminals are targeting and compromising their customers’ access devices to commit fraud against their payment processing systems.
“By choosing Trusteer as a secure web access partner, First Data can provide financial institutions with an integrated solution that helps to protect Internet banking sessions from the end-customer’s device all the way to its back-end systems”, he said.