Last Updated on September 4, 2025 by Narendra Sahoo

If you’ve been running a business in Saudi Arabia that accepts card payments, you’ve probably noticed banks getting more strict about payment security. It’s not just a random policy change, there’s a bigger story here, and understanding it could save your business from serious trouble.

The Growing Risk Landscape

Saudi Arabia’s financial sector has been expanding rapidly, and with it, so has the threat of cybercrime. According to industry reports, payment fraud in the MENA region has been climbing year after year, with card-not-present fraud leading the pack.

One small retailer we worked with in Riyadh learned this the hard way. They were processing payments online without meeting even basic PCI DSS requirements. A breach hit them, and in just a few days, stolen card data from their customers was circulating on the dark web. The fallout? Loss of merchant account, heavy fines, and months of reputational repair.

Why Banks Are Turning Up the Pressure?

Banks in Saudi Arabia have a responsibility — not just to themselves, but to the entire payment ecosystem. When a merchant suffers a breach, the bank often takes the financial hit first.

This is why we’re seeing stricter enforcement of PCI DSS audits. They want proof — documented, verifiable proof — that your systems meet the standards for protecting cardholder data. It’s not just about ticking boxes; it’s about reducing their exposure to fraud.

The Real Challenge

Many businesses think PCI DSS is “for big companies only.” But in reality, even a small café or e-commerce store that processes a handful of card transactions a day needs to comply.

One e-commerce start up in Jeddah we consulted for believed that using a third-party payment gateway meant they didn’t need to worry about security. Wrong. A simple malware infection on their site skimmed customer card details before the data even reached the gateway. Their PCI DSS audit revealed multiple gaps — from insecure admin credentials to a lack of network segmentation.

What Saudi banks Commonly Put in Merchant Agreements?

Saudi banks aren’t just saying “be secure.” They’re embedding specific controls into their merchant agreements:

1. Validation of PCI DSS compliance (method depends on merchant level).
2. Required external vulnerability scanning (ASV) and penetration testing at frequencies aligned with PCI.
3. Obligations to notify the bank promptly of security incidents and to cooperate with investigations.
4. Transaction monitoring and the acquirer’s right to suspend accounts for suspected fraud or rule violations.

Why Compliance Is Cheaper Than Recovery?

Think of compliance as insurance — but better. A proper PCI DSS audit might cost you time and money upfront, but a breach can be 10–20 times more expensive once you factor in fines, legal costs, and lost trust.

We’ve seen companies shut down permanently because they didn’t take this seriously. One mid-sized electronics store chain lost not just money but their ability to process payments for months because they failed their PCI DSS audit after a breach.

How to Get Ahead of the Curve?

If you want to stay on the good side of your bank (and your customers), here’s what we recommend:

• Validate your PCI scope (which SAQ or ROC applies).
• Run quarterly ASV scans and arrange annual penetration testing (and after major changes).
• Harden web applications and servers used for payments; use modern integrations (tokenization, hosted payment pages) to reduce scope.
• Document policies, run staff awareness training, and maintain an incident response plan that maps to your acquiring bank’s merchant agreement.
• Work with a QSA or an experienced security assessor who understands Saudi acquiring rules and mada/SAMA expectations.

Final Thoughts

Saudi Arabian banks are not being difficult for the sake of it. They’re reacting to a genuine and growing threat. Whether you’re running a small shop in Dammam or a large e-commerce platform in Riyadh, ignoring PCI DSS requirements is no longer an option.

The smartest businesses we work with treat compliance not as a hurdle but as a competitive advantage. When customers see that you take payment security seriously, it builds trust — and trust is currency in today’s digital marketplace.

If you’re unsure where to start with your PCI DSS audit or need guidance meeting PCI DSS requirements, our team at VISTA InfoSec has been helping businesses in the Middle East achieve compliance for over 20 years. Let’s make your payment systems not just secure, but trusted.

???? Book a free 15-minute consultation today and secure your payment systems before the next transaction.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

1. What is PCI DSS and why is it important for Saudi Arabian merchants?

PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard) is a set of security standards designed to protect cardholder data. Banks in Saudi Arabia require it to reduce fraud and protect both customers and merchants.

2. How often should I get a PCI DSS audit?

Most businesses should conduct a PCI DSS audit annually, but high-volume merchants may need more frequent assessments.

3. Can I lose my merchant account for non-compliance?

Yes. Acquirers can suspend or terminate merchant accounts for failed compliance or suspected fraud; they may also be required to report to mada/SAMA.

4. Does PCI DSS compliance guarantee zero fraud?

No, but it drastically reduces your risk and makes your business a much harder target for attackers.

The post Why Saudi Arabian Banks Demand Tighter Payment Security? appeared first on Information Security Consulting Company - VISTA InfoSec.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:

The financial sector is a leading target for cyber criminals and cyber criminal attacks. Markedly improving the sector’s cyber security and resilience capabilities are a must. While the sector does have a comparatively high level of cyber security maturity, security gaps invariably persist and threaten to subvert systems.

As Check Point CISO Pete Nicoletti has noted, attackers only need to get it right once in order to catalyze strongly negative, systemic consequences that could send shockwaves throughout companies and lives across the globe.

In this article, discover financial sector trends, challenges and recommendations that can transform how you see and respond to the current cyber threat landscape.

Industry trends

• According to a newly emergent report, 65% of financial services sector organizations have endured cyber attacks.
• The median ransom demand is $2 million. Mean recovery costs have soared to roughly $2.6 million – up from $2.2 million in 2023.
• The size of extreme losses has quadrupled since 2017, to $2.5 billion.

The potential for losses is substantial, especially when multiplied in order to account for downstream effects.

Industry challenges

The majority of financial leaders lack confidence in their organization’s cyber security capabilities, according to the latest research.

Eighty-percent of financial service firm leaders say that they’re unable to lead future planning efforts effectively due to concerns regarding their organization’s abilities to thwart a cyber attack.

There is a significant gap between where financial sector institutions want to be with cyber security and where the industry is right now.

Preparing for disruption

Beyond cyber security, financial sector groups need to concern themselves with business continuity in the event of disruption — which is perhaps more likely than not.

“While cyber incidents will occur, the financial sector needs the capacity to deliver critical business services during these disruptions,” writes the International Monetary Fund.

A major disruption – the financial sector equivalent of the Colonial Pipeline attack – could disable infrastructure, erode confidence in the financial system, or lead to bank runs and market selloffs.

To put the idea into sharper relief, in December of 2023, the Central Bank of Lesotho experienced outages after a cyber attack. While the public did not suffer financial losses, the national payment system could not honor inter-bank transactions for some time.

Industry recommendations

Organizations need innovative approaches to cyber security — approaches that prevent the latest and most sophisticated threats. Approaches that fend off disaster from a distance.

At Check Point, our AI-powered, cloud-delivered cyber security architecture addresses everything — networks, endpoints, cloud environments and mobile devices via a unified approach.

We’ve helped thousands of organizations, like yours, mitigate risks and expand business resilience. Learn more here.

For additional financial services insights, please see CyberTalk.org’s past coverage. Lastly, to receive cyber security thought leadership articles, groundbreaking research and emerging threat analyses each week, subscribe to the CyberTalk.org newsletter.

The post Evolving cyber security in the financial services sector appeared first on CyberTalk.