US Bank is piloting voice biometrics technology which allows customers to access their accounts by speaking into their mobile phones.
The feature allows credit card customers to use their voice to login with a spoken passphrase so they can access their account balances, search transactions and make payments in the bank's mobile app.
US Bank staff have been testing the technology, developed by vendor Nuance Communications, since last April but it is now being rolled out to select credit card customers.
Dominic Venturo, chief innovation officer, US Bank Payment Services, says: "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, GM, enterprise division, Nuance, adds: "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."