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Tokenization and Vendor Payments
Tokenization Providing Security and Speed to Vendor Payments
It is hard to imagine a world where a trip to the bank every week to cash a paycheck was routine. It is equally hard to imagine a world without an ATM machine, where we quickly embraced the ability to deposit checks and receive money in an instant with the push of a pin. While it was Madrid, Spain that installed the first ATM in the world, the U.S. was quick to follow with Chemical Bank leading the charge. On September 2, 1969, Chemical Bank launched an ATM program and subsequent advertising campaign boasting, “On September 2, our banks will open at 9:00am and never close again.” They were right. Today we rely on these machines at our banks, in our grocery stores and at the local gas station. We are confident in the security and only after periods of fraud do we even consider the potential, but it is there and increasing every day as criminals become more entrenched and knowledgeable about the the software that runs the process. The positive thing that comes from a significant breech is the development of more secure tools and processes which is important in any industry but particularly mobile industries like trucking and transportation. This industry has embraced innovations that help to secure vendor payments and more, including tokenization.
What the Trucking Industry is Using Now
Currently the trucking industry is reliant on a variety of tools to help with day to day payments on the road as well as vendor payments and payroll. Payment companies like EFS are managing the most efficient ways to process these payments and are constantly working to make sure methods are as secure as they are efficient. As a leader in the industry EFS is not only helping to advance the trucking industry, they are creating a path for other industries as well. These strategies include:
1. Innovative Technology: World-class systems and technology help to simplify complex B2B vendor payments.
2. Visibility and Control: Visibility, actionable insights and control allows for focus on the vision that will lead the company forward.
3. Industry Experience: 50 years of serving the trucking industry provides the knowledge and expertise in payments and fleets.
4. Individualized Approach: A customized approach based on specific needs to avoid a templated approach.
5. Universal Acceptance: Fleet card solutions accepted at over 15,000 truck-stop locations across North America
6. Forward thinking: Providing the future of commerce to trucking customers daily while developing innovations that become the standards for all industries.
Simplified vendor payments can be one of the most significant priorities in trucking industry, and it is critical to provide the security as well. Adding a virtual payment to the pay cycle is the most streamlined and secure method of making a vendor payment.
With EFS virtual cards, you can make highly secure invoice payments to any vendor who accepts Mastercard using the safety of virtual credit cards and virtual accounts with their unique computer generated numbers used to settle a specific vendor payment and transaction for a specific dollar amount. Designed as a more secure alternative to ACH and check payments, virtual cards are essentially card-less credit card payments that allow you to simplify your vendor payments.
As the world embraces electronic payments, technology offers even more innovation to help make payments simpler and faster but along with ease and speed comes susceptibility to fraud. While individual and corporate credit information is used and stored in locations like websites, mobile wallets, payroll and even vendor payment processing, businesses have become even more vulnerable to breech. Fortunately, the advent of tokenization has recently evolved to provide security and relief for consumer and B2B account to account activity. According to many players in the payment industry, tokenization and blockchain are key drivers that can address both speed and security.
“Underlying the solution is blockchain technology to enhance the security of data stored and accessed by the solution: Cryptographic tokens will facilitate decentralized payment verification, limiting access to sensitive account and payment data.
— Crystal Stranger, co-founder of PeaCounts
How Tokenization is Contributing to Security of Vendor Payments
By removing sensitive data from the transaction process, tokenization is gaining momentum in the payment arena and with banking. Account to account transaction have begun to develop tokenization as the standard. But what is it and how does it work? Similar to how the micro-chip card was developed to prevent banking information duplication at a physical location, the token was developed to stop the same thing from happening online. By definition it can be understood as follows:
Tokenization is the process of protecting sensitive data by replacing it with an algorithmically generated number called a token. In credit card tokenization, the customer’s primary account number (PAN) is replaced with a series of randomly-generated numbers, which is called the “token.” These tokens can then be passed through the internet or the various wireless networks needed to process the payment without actual bank details being exposed. The actual bank account number is held safe in a secure token vault.
Much like virtual cards, tokenization helps to simplify the process by using less information and more distraction for fraudsters. These advances will continue to make the trucking industry more secure on the road and online with vendor payments as easy as the swipe of a finger on a smart phone or tablet. Additionally, EFS will continue to lead the charge with tightened controls, improved efficiencies, enhanced visibility for the security you can count on and the ease you can embrace.
Resources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tokenization_(data_security)
https://squareup.com/townsquare/what-does-tokenization-actually-mean
https://www.pymnts.com/news/b2b-payments/2018/peacounts-blockchain-fraud-security/
https://www.pymnts.com/news/2009/the-evolution-of-electronic-payments/