Chase Paymentech, VeriFone and Semtek Join Forces to Offer End-to-End Encryption Solution

Arrangement will provide new tools to combat data breaches at the point of sale

DALLAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Chase Paymentech, a leading merchant acquirer and payment processor, announces a joint initiative with VeriFone Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:PAY), and Semtek Corporation to provide end-to-end encryption technologies for merchants to combat threats to security.

“Chase Paymentech’s leadership will make it easier for merchants to employ end-to-end encryption”

The companies will work together to market and distribute VeriFone’s VeriShield Protect solution to the Chase Paymentech base of retail merchants. The end-to-end encryption solution is designed to help merchants reduce the costs to comply with Payment Card Industry (PCI) requirements and associated security risk by protecting card information from the point of swipe to the Chase Paymentech authorization host.

VeriShield Protect, which is compliant with Visa’s best practices for data field encryption, also known as end-to-end encryption, is based on the AES encryption standard.

VeriFone Hidden Encryption, or VHE, based on Semtek’s proprietary encryption technology, preserves the format of the card data, ensuring that the encrypted card data can be used by typical point-of-sale software systems with minimal modifications or disruption to the merchant. The solution eliminates the need for a merchant to process, transmit or store card data in the “clear.”

“Protecting cardholder data and providing secure transaction processing for our merchants is paramount to the success of our business. As an industry leader it is our responsibility to provide proven, tested security solutions such as VeriFone’s VeriShield Protect. As the newest component of our overall security suite of products, we’re excited to be offering it to our retail customers,” said Chase Paymentech president Mike Duffy.

“Chase Paymentech’s leadership will make it easier for merchants to employ end-to-end encryption,” said VeriFone CEO Douglas G. Bergeron. “The industry is rapidly coalescing around this solution as the best means to protect cardholder data in the retail environment.”

Semtek CEO Patrick Hazel added, “Joining forces with Chase Paymentech will ensure that a significant merchant population will have full access to the best proven security solution available today. This is very good news for retailers and for consumers.”

About Chase Paymentech

Paymentech, LLC (“Chase Paymentech”), a subsidiary of JPMorgan Chase (NYSE:JPM), is a global leader in payment processing and merchant acquiring, capable of authorizing transactions in more than 130 currencies. The company's proprietary platforms provide access to a wide variety of payment methods, such as credit cards, debit cards, prepaid stored value cards and electronic check processing. In 2008, Chase Paymentech processed more than 21.4 billion transactions with a value exceeding $713.9 billion, including an estimated half of global Internet transactions. The company also provides a full set of solutions aimed at accelerating cash flow and managing transaction data. On the Internet or at the point of sale, Chase Paymentech's unique combination of outstanding service, innovative solutions and financial strength offers solid benefits to companies both large and small. More information can be found at www.chasepaymentech.com.

About VeriFone Holdings, Inc. (www.verifone.com)

VeriFone Holdings, Inc. (“VeriFone”) (NYSE:PAY) is the global leader in secure electronic payment solutions. VeriFone provides expertise, solutions and services that add value to the point of sale with merchant-operated, consumer-facing and self-service payment systems for the financial, retail, hospitality, petroleum, government and healthcare vertical markets. VeriFone solutions are designed to meet the needs of merchants, processors and acquirers in developed and emerging economies worldwide.

About Semtek

Semtek Corporation has been a leader in magnetics technology since 1999, serving large public and private sector clients who require secure data capture components for their fixed-base and wireless devices. Since 2004, Semtek has been focused on resolving the security deficiencies of magnetic stripe based payment systems and is playing an increasingly central role in the development of end to end security architectures for merchants and payment processors. For more information, please visit Semtek’s website at www.semtek.com.

Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 for VeriFone Holdings, Inc.

This press release includes certain forward-looking statements related to VeriFone Holdings, Inc. within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are based on VeriFone management's current expectations or beliefs and are subject to uncertainty and changes in circumstances. Actual results may vary materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements herein due to changes in economic, business, competitive, technological and/or regulatory factors, and other risks and uncertainties affecting the operation of the business of VeriFone Holdings, Inc. These risks and uncertainties include: the successful adoption and implementation of the VeriShield Protect solution by Chase Paymentech retail merchants, our ability to protect against fraud, the status of our relationship with and condition of third parties upon whom we rely in the conduct of our business, our dependence on a limited number of customers, uncertainties related to the conduct of our business internationally, our dependence on a limited number of key employees, short product cycles, rapidly changing technologies and maintaining competitive leadership position with respect to our payment solution offerings. For a further list and description of such risks and uncertainties, see our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including our annual report on Form 10-K and our quarterly reports on Form 10-Q. VeriFone is under no obligation to, and expressly disclaims any obligation to, update or alter its forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, changes in assumptions or otherwise.