ATLANTA, June 30 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Firethorn Holdings, LLC, a Qualcomm company (NASDAQ: QCOM) , today announced enhancements to its mobile banking and payments application to adhere to the industry's most rigorous benchmark for secure credit card transactions - the Payment Card Industry (PCI) Data Security Standard (DSS). In meeting the PCI DSS, Firethorn reinforces its commitment to security and provides additional protection for consumers' sensitive credit and debit card account information in connection with each mobile banking session. It also allows Firethorn's financial institutions, wireless operator and merchant clients to offer enhanced mobile commerce options, such as contactless payments, and other point-of-sale transactions, such as gift cards and loyalty rewards.

"Our goal at Firethorn is to provide an easy, new way for consumers to use their mobile devices for payments and other mobile commerce transactions, and to enhance security by meeting or exceeding the toughest industry standards," said Tripp Rackley, president of Firethorn. "We have worked hard to make sure our solution provides a level of protection that exceeds our partners' and consumers' expectations. Firethorn's latest service upgrades enable our partners to enact a wide range of innovative mobile commerce implementations with the confidence that their sensitive information is protected by tested and accepted security measures."

Firethorn's methods to protect customer data include encryption of account information at rest and in transit, consistent monitoring for malicious activity, and providing security awareness training for all support staff. The Company also conducts regular security assessments of its mobile services to verify that security measures are working appropriately. Firethorn met numerous PCI DSS requirements by relocating its mobile services operation to a protected data center that provides 24/7 support for all Firethorn services.

The PCI DSS is a set of comprehensive requirements for enhancing payment account data security, addressing policies, procedures, network architecture, software design and other critical measures to protect customer account data proactively. It was developed by the founding payment brands of the PCI Security Standards Council(TM), which includes some of the world's leading credit and financial services firms, to help facilitate the broad adoption of consistent data security measures on a global basis.

Firethorn's mobile commerce platform is the definitive banking, payments and commerce solution for the present and future generation of mobile services. The application provides consumers with simple, convenient and efficient access to financial account information and other services such as loyalty programs and targeted offers.

About Firethorn

Firethorn, a Qualcomm company (NASDAQ: QCOM) , is the crucial link in the emerging mobile commerce ecosystem. As a pioneer in mobile banking, Firethorn is transforming the traditional wallet into a streamlined, efficient and protected mobile revenue channel that will bridge relationships among financial institutions, retailers, wireless carriers and consumers. Firethorn's innovative technology creates easily accessible, branded and personalized mobile commerce channels that give consumers access to their accounts, offers and transactions while on the go. For more information about Firethorn, visit www.firethornmobile.com.

Qualcomm is a registered trademark of Qualcomm Incorporated. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

    Qualcomm Contacts:
Kelly Buday, Firethorn
Phone:  1-678-978-5429
Email:  kbuday@qualcomm.com
Emily Kilpatrick, Corporate Communications
Phone:  1-858-845-5959
Email:  corpcomm@qualcomm.com
John Gilbert, Investor Relations
Phone:  1-858-658-4813
Email:  ir@qualcomm.com