Avangate, a Netherlands-based developer of e-commerce and channel management technology for software companies, has received Level 1 PCI Compliant status.

The compliance validation has been performed by Endava UK, a PCI DSS Qualified Security Assessor. The PCI DSS was established by five payment brands (Visa, MasterCard, Discover, JCB, American Express) for organisations that store, process and transmit cardholder information. The PCI DSS was created to help these organisations which process card payments prevent credit card fraud, hacking and various other security vulnerabilities and threats. Any company that processes, stores, or transmits payment card data must be PCI DSS compliant.

According to the company's press release, the Avangate platform, the operational center and the data center located in Amsterdam are audited by an accredited company on a yearly basis. With a sales office in the US and an operational and development office in Romania, Avangate provides an e-commerce platform, a partner relationship management system, an affiliate network and web marketing services.