Written by Tim Deakin

17th December 2024

• PCI DSS

Share this article

Playing a supporting role in PCI DSS certification for the company behind the fast-growing Swingers crazy golf chain.

The Institute of Competitive Socialising (ICS) started out in Shoreditch in 2014, when the company’s founders came up with the idea of mixing crazy golf with cocktails and street food under the brand name, Swingers. The concept proceeded to be a huge success (perhaps not surprisingly, in retrospect) and today there are Swingers venues not just in the UK but also in locations such as Washington D.C., New York City and Las Vegas.

As an organisation required to process many transactions each week – both on-premises and online – ICS identified the need for support in achieving compliance with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS).

ICS approached a number of information security consultancies in 2023 as part of its procurement process. The organisation chose to engage with Security Risk Management not only as a result of our extensive track record in PCI compliance work and auditing but also a positive recommendation from another of our clients, Caffè Nero.

As Group CIO, Itay Inbar explains,

“Our business is growing quickly and we wanted to be proactive in achieving PCI compliance with help from a consultancy that could collaborate effectively with our in-house team.

“SRM has worked with us to create a series of structured steps that we should follow in order to achieve compliance in a quick and efficient manner. This has included engaging with suppliers, delivering write-ups, answering questions whenever we have had them and, of course, preparing the final submission.

For an organisation with a global presence and teams working in different geographies, the challenges of achieving PCI DSS compliance can be significant. This can include managing the scope of cardholder data, collecting evidence and handling third-party vendors.

However, Itay suggests that ICS’s practical and pragmatic approach, guided by SRM has proven to be a successful one.

“SRM’s consultants have done a very good job so far and we’re looking forward to continuing our relationship with them in the future. For a business like ours, it’s crucial that we work with partners who are responsive and experienced enough to understand what we need from them at any given time.

SRM Principal Consultant, Andrew Linn, comments,

“Working with a dynamic and fast-moving organisation like the Institute of Competitive Socialising is particularly rewarding. Understanding a company’s growth aspirations and evolving needs is essential in putting together the right plans and recommendations for achieving compliance.

“Maintaining good risk posture and holding relevant certifications is essential in helping an organisation like ICS stay resilient and retain trust, so it is a real pleasure to see them not only achieve compliance but also go from strength to strength as a business.”

Is PCI compliance important to the future security of your organisation? Get in touch.