Trustwave has announced a new online community designed to foster discussions and a better understanding of information security and compliance best practices.

The exclusive Trustwave TrustKeeper Community is a moderated social network where small businesses can interact with peers, Trustwave security experts, financial institutions and other industry experts, as well as access hundreds of free informational resources from videos to articles.

By creating and exchanging user-generated content, community members can learn more about dozens of information security and compliance topics including Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) compliance.

“For many small businesses, implementing an effective security plan and maintaining PCI compliance can be a complex and mystifying process,” says Doug Klotnia, GM, Compliance and Risk Management at Trustwave.

“Our new social network helps demystify that process by opening communication among small businesses, financial institutions and security experts in an effort to help businesses both achieve PCI compliance and solve other data security issues as technology and payment processing evolves.”

The PCI DSS is a security requirement for businesses that store, process, or transmit cardholder data, which has been endorsed by all the major credit card brands including Visa, MasterCard Worldwide, Discover Network, American Express and JCB.

“As a small business owner that accepts credit cards, it is crucial for me to ensure I have the proper security measures in place to protect my customers’ valuable information. Yet, navigating the PCI landscape can be challenging,” says Joe Gage, owner of West Lake Mail in Austin, Texas.

“The Trustwave TrustKeeper Community is an outstanding resource that gives me a better understanding of PCI compliance and data security by giving me access to valuable insight from security experts and my peers. Together we learn and share information about the evolving data security industry keeping up to speed on the latest threats, and staying one step ahead of the cybercriminals.”

For acquiring banks and independent sales organizations, the community can serve as a co-branded platform that helps their merchants gain more understanding of compliance and increase compliancy among their merchant base.

“Providing the most advanced payment solutions, best customer service and securing cardholder data are top priorities for our organisation,” says Patrick Shanahan, chief operating officer at CardConnect, a payment processor that helps 50 000 US businesses accept billions of dollars in electronic transactions each year.

“With Trustwave TrustKeeper Community, we are able to speak with many customers at once about PCI compliance and data security, making them aware of the latest security requirements and best practices on how they can protect their confidential data and payment card information.”