Credit Card Encryption Key (Desktop)
This article is only for VM Desktop users who process credit cards through Vital/Visanet/Tsys or Moneris.
What the encryption key looks like
The Encryption Key is a USB key/stick with a security 3/4kb file on it without which you will not be able to read or process credit cards and settle the daily batch.
The file name is IT_VM_KEY.DAT.
When you got "live" on Visual Matrix with one of the processors listed above, we ran encryption on your database to secure any personal information such as credit cards and driving licenses numbers.
The file on this key is what decrypts those numbers.
You should be 3 keys:
- One "Active key": the file is between 1 and 3kb. This key can be used to create duplicates but not to restore a system.
- Two "Backup Keys": the file on those keys goes from 3 to 4kb. Those keys are used to restore your database in case of a Server Reinstall.
Any of those keys can be plugged into the Server for everyday activity, although we do highly advise using the Active key in the Server and keeping the backup keys safely at the hotel.
If the key in the server has a problem and you do not have the other keys, we will not be able to retrieve the data.
We will have to create a new key and you will lose ALL credit card data past, present, and future that are currently in your database.
Is the Encryption Key Secure enough
Encryption key was the first type of encryption Visual Matrix has developed. However, knowing that with an encryption key you are storing all your data locally, is a liability that you could get rid of.
Today, there are better-advanced ways to secure your data and increase chargebacks protection, it is called end-to-end encryption.
Can I get rid of the encryption key?
Yes, you can, by switching your credit card processor to more secure encryption.
Other processors have higher security and give you the possibility to have EMV processing. Going EMV is a huge security improvement that has multiple benefits including increased chargeback protection and tokenization to avoid local storage of credit card numbers.
Migrating to VM Cloud will also give you more security.
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