Focus on OIT
First Data Credit Card Processing a Compelling Pilot Project
Implementing secure and compliant online credit card transactions at Emory has been an IT request since the earliest days of the web.
One of the most common, vexing needs facing Web site owners is the challenge of taking credit card payments. From the need for compliance to the exposure of potential data loss, the hurdles to even the simplest transaction have made it difficult, if not nearly impossible for Emory sites to sell items or tickets. OIT is working with resources from several units across campus to change that.
For sites with simple needs, the First Data credit card processing gateway is an entirely hosted means of securely processing credit card transactions from Emory sites. Site owners simply obtain a merchant account tied to the university's master account, then create a Web form on their local site with the pricing and product information. Once the user starts the transaction, they are sent to First Data, where all of the sensitive data is processed and handled.
The money ends up in the Emory master account flagged with the appropriate merchant account, where it can be easily disbursed. The process can be very simple or, for sites that want to have more control over the user experience, transaction information can be handed back to the originating site for custom confirmation screens. The process is simple to set up and OIT Architecture has worked with UTS to create prototype integrations with Cascade for the most basic of scenarios.
Research and Health Sciences IT is currently working on a First Data integration with the Department of Anesthesiology's New Horizons conference registration.
Many sites are using the Trumba calendaring system, and a common request is to find a way to offer paid events. Trumba announced last week that paid event registration will now be a part of their service offering. OIT Architecture and UTS are working with the Carlos Museum to pilot this feature for some of the events that they host.
The Carlos Museum bookstore is also implementing an eCommerce pilot project using the Amazon Webstore product. The Amazon product enables sites to have an entirely customized storefront, while taking advantage of the Amazon payment and processing ecosystem. As part of the pilot, the Carlos will sell a selection of books and memberships.
The end goal of these pilot projects is to have consistent, repeatable examples to begin building best practices around what is certainly one of the most challenging and difficult Web development problems. By leveraging cloud-based products and hosted solutions, many of the most thorny problems, such as infrastructure implementation costs and compliance issues, can be avoided, allowing users to focus on providing customers with compelling content and products that will have them reaching for their wallets.
- Lee Clontz, Multimedia Dev/Lead, Integration