Banks to use voice IDs

The main British banks plan to introduce voice recognition over the next year as a way of deterring card fraudsters, according to speech software specialist Nuance.

Ian Turner, general manager for Nuance's operations in northern Europe, said: "By the end of next year, about 20 million people in the UK will be registered with some kind of system."

He said voice recognition can be 97 per cent accurate, but it is always used with some other form of identification, such as a password.

He added that even good mimics cannot fool the system. He said: "You may not realised that many of the performers you see on TV taking off politicians rely as much as on body language as voice."

Nuance, best known for its Dragon Naturally Speaking voice-input software, provides one of the major voice-biometric systems on the market.

Initial use of the program will be introduced in bank call centres for when people ring in to check their accounts or transfer money. However, it could also be used to curb online fraud by asking someone making a transaction to ring an ID system; if the user is equipped for VoIP, it could be done directly over the web.

A recent survey commissioned by Nuance indicated that most people are in favour of multi-factor identification systems, including voice biometrics.