MasterCard's Business Risk Assessment and Mitigation (BRAM) program is designed to protect the payment network from illegal or brand-damaging activities. Under the BRAM program, MasterCard enforces fines on acquiring banks when they detect payment processes that involve fraud, illegal transactions, or activities that could pose regulatory or reputational risks.
If you feel like your payment processor is failing to protect you from such activities, Sigal Law Group's experienced merchant processing litigators are here to help. Contact our offices today for a free consultation.
How Can BRAM Issues Affect Your Business?
Brand-damaging activities the BRAM program may fine can include such activities as:
· the illegal sale of prescription drugs
· counterfeit merchandise
· illegal gambling
· child exploitation
· banned pornography
The BRAM program fines are meant to act as a deterrent, helping maintain a safer environment for consumers.
For merchants, however, BRAM violations can lead to severe consequences such as financial penalties, account termination, and inclusion in a database of terminated merchants, making it difficult to acquire a new merchant account for five years. On the other hand, bank acquirers who are caught up in such accusations can face substantial fines if they fail to appropriately classify high-risk merchants or allow them to process illegal transactions. Thus, bank acquirers can be overly zealous when reporting accusations of merchant BRAM violations.
Unfortunately, this creates unnecessary and potentially disastrous consequences for merchants. Working with a skilled merchant processing litigator is the only way to ensure that you are not being unfairly prosecuted.
The penalties for non-compliance with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) can also be severe. Merchants who fail to comply with this standard can face fines ranging from $5,000 to $100,000 monthly until full compliance is achieved. They also risk negligence lawsuits from banks, customers, and card processing companies.
Maintaining compliance with BRAM and PCI DSS is crucial for merchants and acquirers alike. If your business has been accused of a BRAM or PCI DSS violation, you must contact Sigal Law Group today for help. Contact our offices for a free consultation.