In this module,
we're going to look at the PCI Professional qualification, and
we're going to consider three things. Firstly,
what's the use of being a PCI Professional, a PCIP? Secondly,
how to get the qualification. And we will look at how to apply for
the qualification and then how to do the examination. And then
finally, how to maintain the qualification,
which is initially valid just for three years.
The PCIP qualification is valuable if you're going to work with
card payments and in the payment security industry. It shows
people that you've got a good foundational understanding of how
payments work, and, of course,
the great advantage is in that studying for the qualification,
you actually will gain and solidify that knowledge
about how the payment system works.
It also gives you a more formal relationship with the PCI SSC
in that you'll receive the PCIP newsletter,
be invited to quarterly webinars, and you can attend the
annual community meeting, and your feedback to standards
development will be welcomed.
And of course, it stays with you rather than the
organization you're associated with.
So if you move organizations,
you continue to be a PICP. And having PCIPs within an organization
really can help the organization securing cardholder data and help
through the organization's compliance journey.
Because the PCIP will understand the standard, the PCI DSS,
and therefore, they will be able to understand what an
assessor is trying to achieve.
So they'll be able to help in the preparation of documentation and samples
for the assessor to assess, and this can actually really improve the
efficiency and speed of the PCI DSS assessment.
I've found that the more people there are in an
organization who understand how payments work and how PCI
DSS wants to protect payment card data,
the more likely it is that the organization is going to make sensible
decisions about payment security and about compliance.
Now most of the practical steps needed to obtain the PCIP qualification that
I'm going to cover in this module are documented in the PCIP Qualifications
Requirement document, which you can download from the PCI SSC website. The
link's on the slide at the moment. Or you could just go to your favorite
search engine and type in the PCIP Qualifications Requirement, and it should
be the first link. The PCIP is intended for IT professionals working in
payments.
One of the prerequisites is a couple of years of IT experience,
so it makes a great complementary qualification to your main IT career.
So whether you're a developer, a project manager, an architect, or an auditor,
if you specialize in networks or systems, or even if you're a business analyst,
adding the PCIP qualification to your core IT skills portfolio will make
it easier and more rewarding to work on PCI projects.
And of course, if you're looking to move roles,
having a PCIP qualification can really make a difference if
you're going to move to an organization that is subject to
PCI compliance requirements.
And if you want to go on, for example,
to be a QSA or an internal security assessor,
this is a great starting point.
I also know of many payment professionals and accountants working
for acquirers and issuers who have taken the PICP qualification just
so they get a broad understanding of how the industry works and how
the security standards work.
And also, managers of IT teams and non‑IT teams working on PCI
programs have taken PCIP and found it to be really valuable
because that foundational knowledge of the qualification is really
useful to add to your main career.
There are three paths to qualification.
The PCI SSC offers instructor‑led training in
various locations around the world.
It also offers an E‑learning course. And finally,
there's the option just to take the exam on its own. And given you're
a Pluralsight subscriber and you can take advantage of the PICP
learning path here at Pluralsight, I'm guessing this option is going
to be the most popular for you.