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Call center authentication remains operationally challenging yet strategically critical

The migration of fraudulent activity between online and call center customer access channels continues. As defenses are built in one channel, fraud seeps into other less-fortified, non-face-to-face areas.

Experian’s Fraud and Identity consultants continue to hear from clients and regulatory agencies that customer authentication in a call center environment, much like the online access path, offers both challenge and opportunity. Two current call center challenges include, but are not limited to:

Social engineering
The 'human element' is inherent in a call center environment and often critical fromacustomer experience perspective. This factor offers the opportunity for fraudsters tomanipulate representatives to either gain unauthorised access to accounts or, at the very least, collect consumer and account information that may help them perpetrate fraud later.

Additionally, internally derived challenge questions (those created from information readily available to call center agents) or consumer-created 'secret questions' are often easily attainable pieces of information.

Automatic Number Identification (ANI) spoofing
This technology allows a caller to alter the true displayable number from which he or she is calling to a falsely portrayed number. It is difficult, if not impossible, to find a legitimate use for this technology. Fraudsters, however, find this capability quite useful as they try to circumvent what was once a very effective method of positively authenticating a consumer based on a 'good' or known incoming phone number.

With ANI spoofing in play, many call centers are now unable to confidently rely on this cost-effective method to authenticate consumers.

As is often the case, with evolving challenges comes the opportunity to improve existing processes. Because call centers generally incorporate a cost structure heavily impacted by talk times, tools exist that may offer the chance to both mitigate fraud and reduce cost:

Knowledge-based authentication (KBA)
This process involves the use of challenge/response questions beyond 'secret' or 'traditional' internally derived questions (such as mother’s maiden name or last transaction amount).

The tool allows for measurably effective use of questions based on more broad-reaching data (credit and noncredit) and consistent delivery of those questions without subjective question creation and grading by call center agents.

KBA questions sourced from information that is not easily accessible by call center agents or fraudsters can provide an additional layer of security that is more impenetrable from social engineering.

From a process and operational efficiency standpoint, the use of automated KBA can also reduce call times, as agents spend less time self-selecting questions, self-grading responses and subjectively determining next steps.

Delivery of KBA questions via interactive voice response (IVR) systems can further reduce operational costs since the entire KBA process can be accommodated without call center agent involvement.

On the horizon, KBA will continue to evolve to support the call center and associated emerging threats. We expect to see more prevalent integration of other risk-based authentication tools, such as voice biometrics, adding yet another piece of intelligence to the always-demanding call center authentication process.

While no single identity element or tool is a silver bullet for positive or negative authentication decisioning, the layering of voice biometrics onto other processes or in place of more arduous efforts likely will afford stronger authentication and lower costs to call center managers.

Keir Breitenfeld
Director
Fraud and Identity Solutions
Experian

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