Voice biometrics are being tried to give access to credit card accounts in a trial at a United States bank. It lets its customers speak phrases such as “my voice is my password” to find out their credit card balance, search recent transactions or even make a payment through a mobile app.
This indicates a trend in banks moving to more secure methods of authentication and addressing customer dissatisfaction with existing processes, according to the voice biometrics product company from Nuance Communications. The feature – called voice biometrics – allows select credit card customers to use their voice to login with a spoken pass-phrase so they can access their account balances, search transactions and make a payment on their account in the mobile app.
The firm claims this addresses consumer dissatisfaction with PINs, passwords, and security questions, while maintaining the integrity of a secure system. With a spoken passphrase, the biometric allows consumers to be authenticated when they connect with a service provider via a call center or IVR, a mobile app, or the web.
Dominic Venturo, chief innovation officer for US Bank Payment Services said: “Voice biometrics is a unique identifier that will help us improve the customer experience. Customers are becoming accustomed to using their voice to interact with their smartphones and can become frustrated with key entering passwords. Exploring a spoken passphrase login through this technology is a logical next step in our work in biometrics.”
Robert Weideman, executive vice president and general manager of the Nuance Enterprise Division, added: “We’ve seen unprecedented growth in the adoption of voice biometrics as consumers worldwide have become used to more conversational engagement with their devices, apps and service experiences. Innovative organizations like US Bank recognise that voice biometrics can bring a new level of convenience and security to the customer service experience. By eliminating the interrogation process that consumers are typically put through and replacing it with a natural, conversational voice interaction, companies can really start to reinvent their customer service experience.”
This latest pilot expands the work US Bank and Nuance began in April, in which voice recognition was used for conducting basic functions, such as to view account balances, search transactions and make a payment on their accounts. For more information visit www.nuance.com
