FirstBank joins advisory board of PCI Security Standards Council

First Bank of Nigeria Limited, a leader in corporate governance and effective risk management, has been elected into the Board of Advisors of the PCI Security Standards Council (PCI SSC), an open, global forum for the development of payment card security standards.

Lara Nwokedi, head, Information Security, First Bank of Nigeria Limited will represent the PCI community on the 2013-2015 PCI SSC Board of Advisors by providing strategic and technical guidance to the PCI Security Standards Council that reflects the varied and unique industry perspective of those across the payment chain. Nwokedi, a payment card industry professional, ISO27001 lead auditor and implementer has many years’ experience in information security and has led several initiatives in the Bank.

FirstBank’s spokesperson, Folake Ani-Mumuney said the election reinforces the bank’s strong risk governance rating which is evident in its position as the first financial institution in Nigeria to attain the ISO/IEC 27001: 2005 Information Security Management Systems (ISMS) certification from the British Standards Institution (BSI). “This underscores our strict adherence to the security and protection of the information of over seven million customers in over 700 locations in Nigeria. This protection is also replicated across the Bank’s over 2000 ATMs, hundreds of POS terminals and internet banking transactions,” she said.

The Board of Advisors is a cross-industry group elected by the Council’s more than 690 Participating Organizations – including merchants, financial institutions and processors from around the world – to ensure global stakeholder representation in the ongoing development of PCI Security Standards. In addition to advising on standards development, the Board of Advisors plays a critical role in soliciting feedback and ideas, contributing to Special Interest Groups (SIGs), and helping the Council fulfill its mission to raise awareness and adoption of PCI Standards.

“As an open and global standards body our success is dependent upon the active involvement of the global payments community. And our Board members play an integral role in helping drive this participation and ensuring that the interests of the wider community are reflected in the work that we’re doing, said Bob Russo, general manager, PCI Security Standards Council.

HOPE MOSES-ASHIKE