Voice Biometrics Are Ready for Prime Time in Banking

Banks have been dealing with a balancing act between “fast and frictionless” and “secure and accurate” for many years, with consumers long pushing to move away from traditional, friction-based means of authentication. Thankfully, ditching outdated ID methods is now feasible, with recent improvements in biometric technology tipping the scale toward convenience.

Today, the average industry accuracy rate for conversational artificial intelligence (AI) companies using biometrics is 90+ percent. And when applied in the form of conversational banking to meet customer needs, the intelligent technology of industry leaders like Clinc, an AI FinTech, achieves a 95 percent containment rate (as demonstrated in interactions with over 10 million users in a production environment). The consumer banking experience has never been so seamless.

Ready for deployment to fight fraud, voice biometrics can also play an ideal role as a component of multi-factor authentication during the caller experience. In general, there are three possible ways of proving one's identity:

1. Something you have, such as a key, a document, a card, or a badge.
2. Something you know, whether a password, recent activity or proprietary data.
3. Something you are, from your voice to your fingerprint to your face.

Biometric technology is the “how” behind using something you are to prove identity. Human characteristics—which are universal, unique, permanent, recordable, measurable, and nearly forgery-proof—can be analyzed and verified. Eliminating the need to keep up with a physical object or to regurgitate information through the application of biometrics delivers the convenience that consumers demand without sacrificing security.

When a bank customer calls the financial institution’s customer service number, for example, voice biometric authentication can be conducted quickly at the outset of the call. Rather than having to answer multiple out-of-wallet questions (e.g., “What is your account number? What was your last deposit? What street did you grow up on?”), a customer can verify his or her own identity by speaking a few words. Because every human has a unique combination of behaviors and characteristics associated with their speech, a voice can act like a fingerprint—known as a “voiceprint.” Today’s advanced biometric technology can authenticate users’ voiceprints within seconds to enhance contact center security and prevent fraud. 

By eliminating the need for an interrogation of the accountholder, customer service agents can immediately offer assistance, starting the call on a positive note. Like magic, voice biometrics transforms the customer experience from “WHO ARE YOU?” to “HOW ARE YOU?”

Consumers are ready to embrace voice biometric technology. In today’s digitally-driven world, they expect the speed and convenience it promises. In fact, in May 2020, FICO’s Consumer Digital Banking study discovered that “consumers are becoming more trusting of using physical and behavioral biometrics to secure their financial accounts, as 78 percent say they would be happy for their bank to analyze behavioral biometrics,” which includes voice recognition.

In addition to preventing fraud and improving the customer experience, voice biometric technology reduces call handle times, which reduces call center costs and guarantees a return on investment. Lastly, preventing fraud protects a financial institution’s brand. Consumer confidence is invaluable to those entrusted with safeguarding customers’ and members’ hard-earned money.

Voice biometrics is ready for prime time in the financial services industry. In February 2021, Forrester released a report stating that, “Modern voice biometrics solutions resist replay attacks and have improved in accuracy and performance in the past five years, making them well suited for call center security and fraud management use cases.”

The technology is reliable, and consumers are receptive…the time is right for financial institutions to roll out voice biometrics to fight fraud, enhance the customer experience, and improve their bottom line.