Russia's Sberbank is planning to roll out ATMs that use voice analysis software to tell whether customers are lying when they apply for credit cards, according to the New York Times.
The bank wants to introduce machines that let Russians apply for cards without having to talk to staff. To enable this, the ATMs will use a raft of high-tech systems - including passport scans, fingerprint recording and three-dimensional scans for facial recognition - to verify people.
However, the most controversial feature is voice analysis software from local vendor Speech Technology Center that will be used to assess whether applicants are answering questions such as "are you employed?" honestly by detecting things such as nervousness and emotional distress.
Sberbank has installed a prototype at its 'branch of the future' laboratory in Moscow and hopes to roll out the machines in branches and malls across the country, although no timetable has been set.
"We are not violating a client's privacy. We are not climbing into the client's brain. We aren't invading their personal lives. We are just trying to find out if they are telling the truth. I don't see any reason to be alarmed," Victor Orlovsky, SVP, technology, Sberbank, told the Times.
A Russian A.T.M. With an Ear for the Truth - New York Times