PCI DSS Readiness & Advisory

PCI DSS readiness ensures that organisations handling card payments understand their cardholder data environment, applicable requirements, and what evidence must be produced for a successful assessment.

Poleis supports merchants and service providers through the full readiness journey — from scoping and data flow mapping to gap analysis, remediation planning and audit preparation — helping reduce effort, improve clarity and avoid late-stage findings.

Scoping & cardholder data flow mapping

Effective PCI DSS engagements begin with understanding where cardholder data (CHD) and sensitive authentication data (SAD) reside, move and are stored.

We support scoping by helping you determine:

• Systems and services that store, process or transmit CHD or SAD
• Cardholder data flows and supporting diagrams
• Boundary definition and segmentation considerations
• Third-party involvement and shared responsibilities
• In-scope vs out-of-scope systems and components

Proper scoping reduces unnecessary work and aligns expectations for assessors and internal stakeholders.

PCI DSS gap assessment

We perform a structured gap assessment against applicable PCI DSS controls, aligned to your SAQ type or Report on Compliance (ROC) obligations.

• Review of technical and procedural controls
• Assessment of evidence completeness and consistency
• Identification of missing or weak controls
• Evaluation of service provider dependencies
• Prioritised findings mapped to realistic remediation actions

Each gap is classified and linked to achievable corrective actions based on your environment and delivery capacity.

Remediation planning

Achieving PCI DSS compliance requires coordinated improvements across technical, procedural and operational areas. We help design realistic, risk-aligned remediation plans.

• Prioritised remediation roadmap
• Control design support (technical and procedural)
• Evidence preparation guidance
• Third-party involvement and shared responsibility models

The focus is on sustainable improvements — not quick fixes that fail future assessments.

Audit preparation & evidence support

PCI DSS assessments require consistent, well-structured evidence. We support organisations in preparing for both internal reviews and Qualified Security Assessor (QSA) engagements.

• Evidence collection and organisation
• Document and diagram review (accuracy and completeness)
• Support for SAQ validation and ROC preparation
• Walkthrough preparation for internal stakeholders

This reduces last-minute issues and helps ensure smoother interaction with QSAs.

Who this service is for

This service is suitable for organisations that:

• Process or store cardholder data
• Operate ecommerce or card payment platforms
• Rely on service providers for payment processing
• Need clarity on PCI DSS applicability and evidence expectations