# The language of fraud: Fighting fraudsters with voice biometrics
Author:  Pal Sinha, Barnali 
Author URL: https://financedigest.com/author/pal-sinha-barnali
Published: 2018-03-23
Category: TECHNOLOGY
Category URL: https://financedigest.com/category/technology
Meta Title: Voice Biometrics: The Future of Cyber Security in the
Meta Description: Learn how voice biometrics can protect against phone fraud and keep your financial information secure, even in the face of sophisticated cyber threats.
URL: https://financedigest.com/the-language-of-fraud-fighting-fraudsters-with-voice-biometricshtml

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_Brian Martin, ‎Regional Director – U.K. & Ireland – ‎Spitch_

Fraud is one of the most common and fastest-growing crimes in the UK. In fact, research estimates that there are around [500 incidents of identity fraud every day](https://www.cifas.org.uk/newsroom/identity-fraud-soars-to-new-levels). The [banking and finance sectors](https://www.financedigest.com/is-automation-key-to-esg-success-in-the-banking-and-finance-sector.html "Is automation key to ESG success in the banking and finance sector?") are especially vulnerable to this threat. Whether it’s a conversation about telephone banking or a retail query, almost every conversation is full of security gaps and weaknesses – and hackers are always ready to jump on an [opportunity to defraud a consumer and defame a business](https://www.financedigest.com/autonomous-vehicles-market-emerging-growth-analysis-future-demand-and-business-opportunities-2026.html "Autonomous Vehicles Market Emerging Growth Analysis, Future Demand and Business Opportunities 2026").

A simple look at the [major hacks of the last few years quickly highlights](https://www.financedigest.com/bone-grafts-and-substitutes-market-overview-highlighting-major-drivers-growth-and-demand-report-2018-2026.html "Bone Grafts and Substitutes Market Overview Highlighting Major Drivers, Growth and Demand Report 2018 – 2026") the financial sector’s vulnerability. From a supermarket bank’s 2016 breach which saw attackers withdraw money from 20,000 of its [customer accounts](https://www.financedigest.com/covid-19-has-made-your-customer-accounts-more-valuable.html "Covid-19 has made your customer accounts more valuable"), to a major high street bank’s denial of service of attack in 2017 – it’s clear that there’s a lot more to be done when it comes to staying cyber secure in finance.

Historically, these weaknesses have not been difficult to find. Criminals often [favour phone](https://www.financedigest.com/snap-happy-79-of-brits-ditch-digital-cameras-in-favour-of-phone-photos.html "Snap Happy: 79% of Brits ditch digital cameras in favour of phone photos") fraud because voice is one of the easiest channels to hack. Through sophisticated social engineering methods, they can manipulate [operators to allow them access to customer](https://www.financedigest.com/australias-qantas-apologises-to-customers-for-operational-problems.html "Australia’s Qantas apologises to customers for operational problems") information or make transactions from a third party’s account.

And because protection for so many consumer-facing services is only a password, as soon as any fraudster figures out what a customer’s might be (often gleaned from a few publicly available pieces of personal information), they have unfettered access.

As hackers develop more advanced means of committing phone fraud, organisations in every [industry must](https://www.financedigest.com/why-the-industry-must-simplify-cybersecurity.html "WHY THE INDUSTRY MUST SIMPLIFY CYBERSECURITY") step up their security measures to mitigate the risks. With voice biometrics, such as automated [speech recognition](https://www.financedigest.com/how-speech-recognition-and-ai-are-fighting-fraud-in-financial-services.html "How speech recognition and AI are fighting fraud in financial services "), providing a compelling means by which to protect customers, must be a part of the future fraud fight.

**How voice biometrics keeps the bad guys out**

Innovative, future-ready technologies such as voice biometrics systems are already being used by numerous industries across many verticals, in order to eliminate the need for customers to remember passwords when talking to businesses over the phone. They work by taking a recording of live speech, then creating a [digital voiceprint that contains all the identifying features of a voice](https://www.financedigest.com/b2b-specialist-pr-agency-the-digital-voice-announces-four-key-account-wins-as-it-celebrates-its-tenth-birthday.html "B2B specialist PR agency The Digital Voice announces four key account wins as it celebrates its tenth birthday") and storing that on a secure system. From that point on, whenever the customer speaks to the business on the phone their [voice is analysed against the digital](https://www.financedigest.com/the-digital-voice-adtech-pr-agency-grows-team-by-eight.html "The Digital Voice Adtech PR Agency Grows Team By Eight") voiceprint – either passively (as in, while the conversation is ongoing) or actively (as in, having to repeat a stock phrase before continuing). Thereby negating the need for a password.

This aspect is what makes voice biometrics such a [secure verification](https://www.financedigest.com/how-digital-identity-verification-will-revolutionize-security-defenses-in-the-financial-services-industry.html "How Digital Identity Verification Will Revolutionize Security Defenses in the Financial Services Industry") method. The system will run a comparison between the customer’s voice and the [digital voiceprint based on numerous parameters making the solution](https://www.financedigest.com/carta-teams-up-with-vauban-to-launch-the-first-digital-solution-aimed-at-venture-capital-investors-creating-luxembourg-based-funds.html "Carta teams up with Vauban to launch the first digital solution aimed at venture capital investors creating Luxembourg-based funds") near impossible to hack. And it’s not the case that a fraudster could do a good impression of the customer and gain access – the [analysis is deep](https://www.financedigest.com/low-calorie-toast-market-insights-deep-analysis-of-key-vendor-in-the-industry-2022-2031.html "Low-calorie Toast Market Insights, Deep Analysis of Key Vendor in the Industry 2022-2031") enough to confirm that a caller really is who they say they are.

At the same time, voice biometrics can be used against the attackers themselves. If a fraudster is detected trying to gain access to customer accounts, call recordings can be used to [create a voice](https://www.financedigest.com/veritone-launches-marvel-ai-a-complete-end-to-end-voice-as-a-service-solution-to-create-and-monetise-hyper-realistic-synthetic-voice-content-at-commercial-scale.html "Veritone Launches MARVEL.ai, a Complete End-to-End Voice-as-a-Service Solution, to Create and Monetise Hyper-Realistic Synthetic Voice Content at Commercial Scale") profile of them on the system. An organisation can thus create a database of known fraudsters and use the biometrics system to analyse all callers against that database.

The result is that anyone who has ever been caught committing fraud, successfully or unsuccessfully, will forever be locked out of the system. No matter when they call up or whichever name they use, the system will detect their voice and automatically flag the call to the operator, who can then take appropriate action.

**Voice** [biometrics in the future](https://www.financedigest.com/the-future-of-payments-biometrics-within-the-financial-ecosystem.html "The Future of Payments: Biometrics Within the Financial Ecosystem")

As a method of detecting and deterring fraud, voice biometrics is an incredibly compelling [solution for numerous industries](https://www.financedigest.com/geospatial-solution-market-one-of-the-most-booming-industry-in-upcoming-years.html "Geospatial Solution Market One of the Most Booming Industry in Upcoming Years"). Retailers could use voice verification to ensure only customers can make transactions, even if card details are [saved on the account](https://www.financedigest.com/digitised-prize-linked-savings-accounts-how-it-can-encourage-better-financial-habits.html "Digitised prize-linked savings accounts: How it can encourage better financial habits"). [Healthcare organisations could use it so that only patients can access their records or receive test](https://www.financedigest.com/on-demand-healthcare-to-bolster-the-in-vitro-toxicity-testing-market.html "On-demand healthcare to bolster the In Vitro Toxicity Testing Market") results. And, if used as part of automated self-service systems, voice biometrics can offer a service that’s more convenient for the [end user](https://www.financedigest.com/paper-recycling-market-competitive-growth-strategies-based-on-type-applications-end-user-and-region.html "Paper Recycling Market Competitive Growth Strategies Based on Type, Applications, End User and Region") and inherently secure.

Voice biometrics is also something that will deliver greater benefits as the technology develops and more sophisticated capabilities will come into play. The ability to detect stress, tiredness, unhappiness or a range of emotions in someone’s voice already exists. Going forward, these kinds of [innovations will evolve to make the system increasingly helpful to vulnerable](https://www.financedigest.com/the-injectable-nanomedicines-market-to-witness-innovative-vulnerability-between-2018-2026.html "The Injectable Nanomedicines Market To Witness Innovative Vulnerability Between 2018-2026") businesses.

It’s also not long before voice biometric data [becomes heavily utilised in legal](https://www.financedigest.com/property-letting-could-become-a-legal-minefield.html "PROPERTY LETTING COULD BECOME A LEGAL MINEFIELD") proceedings. [Digital voiceprints could become a reliable way of proving the identity](https://www.financedigest.com/transparency-and-decentralisation-the-remedy-to-our-digital-identity-fears.html "Transparency and decentralisation, the remedy to our digital identity fears") of phone fraudsters, for example. Similarly, the metadata collected by voice biometrics systems (time, date, location, device) could be used anywhere from courtrooms to benefits claims departments, eventually deterring hackers from engaging in voice fraud in the first place.

It’s important to remember that the right tool should be able to exist, cooperate with and enhance [current processes](https://www.financedigest.com/the-problem-with-current-anti-money-laundering-processes-a-lack-of-context.html "The problem with current Anti-Money Laundering processes: A lack of context"). It should make life easier, and not add further layers of [complexity to the security](https://www.financedigest.com/managing-compliance-complexity-will-deliver-security-rewards.html "Managing compliance complexity will deliver security rewards") back-end. Nor [become another node through which data](https://www.financedigest.com/becoming-data-ready-for-mtd-for-corporation-tax-aligning-vat-and-ct.html "Becoming data-ready for MTD for Corporation Tax: aligning VAT and CT") can escape.

Above all, it’s vital that banks recognise that modern threats need modern responses. The traditional idea of a [bank as a safe](https://www.financedigest.com/why-open-banking-is-safe.html "WHY OPEN BANKING IS SAFE?") house needs updating – biometrics must be a part of that work.


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