up to 20 passwords, and more than 60 percent make mistakes while typing in their password using a mobile phone. Voice biometrics on the other hand, eliminates the need for awkward passwords as the system is able to identify a user based solely on their voice.
But it’s not only the inconvenience of the password on the smartphone that is calling for change. Customers are increasingly using their phones for high-risk transactions, such as banking or shopping. A recent report by eBay and PayPal found that the value of retail purchases on mobile has increased more than 30-fold in the last two years. With so many Australians completing transactions and carrying increased amounts of sensitive information on their smart devices, the need for a more secure authentication process that is better suited to the smartphone has become paramount.
Organisations are finding that voice biometrics helps address these challenges because it is inherently more secure. A person’s voiceprint is unique, much like a person’s fingerprint. Someone can’t guess your voice, whereas fraudsters can guess a password or PIN. Highlighting this point is a recent report
Organisations are finding that voice biometrics helps address these challenges because it is inherently more secure. A person’s voiceprint is unique, much like a person’s fingerprint. Someone can’t guess your voice, whereas fraudsters can guess a password or PIN. Highlighting this point is a recent report on the top 10,000 passwords, which indicates that close to 8.5 per cent of customers use the passwords ‘password’ or ‘123456’. While a separate study showed that 10.7 per cent of four digit PINs are “1234”. With voice biometrics, customers can avoid using passwords all together, ensuring a simpler and more secure authentication process.
The rise of fraud within the call centre
Another trend drawing attention to the limitations of password and knowledge based authentication is the rise of fraud in the call centre. Typically, call centres use either PIN credentials or knowledge questions to verify a caller’s identity. In the case of knowledge questions, an agent will ask for information such as the caller’s address, phone number, birth date or mother’s maiden name. If the caller answers correctly, the agent will consider the caller’s identity valid.
However, the vulnerabilities of such systems include database hacking, internet searches for personal information and social engineering. The last of which, social engineering, is where a fraudster uses tricks and psychological manipulation in order to gain sensitive information from a customer service agent. Call centres are particularly vulnerable to this type of attack because, instead of being rewarded for preventing fraud, call centre agents are encouraged to minimise Average Hold Time and deliver a quick and easy customer experience.
As of 2011, about 67 per cent of social engineering attempts at Australian bank call centres were successful. This is because call centre agents often lack the training and incentives to detect social engineering attempts. Additionally, organisations that have required agents to comply with stringent security procedures often see disastrous impacts on customer care. As such, organisations tend to implement security procedures that impose the minimum amount of inconvenience to the caller. However, this creates an important security vulnerability that fraudsters can leverage with increasing frequency.
A benefit of voice biometrics is that voiceprints can be verified quickly during a call to confirm identity and let the caller complete their enquiry or transaction. However, the same technology will also flag if the voice and voiceprint do not match, keeping fraudsters out and ensuring security for customers.
An improved customer experience
The final key factor influencing this trend is the use of voice biometrics not just for security, but also to provide improved and more personalised experiences for the customer. With voice biometrics, customers no longer need to answer intrusive security questions or remember pass