Audio ‘fingerprinting’ technology helps Britain’s second biggest pureplay online retailer improve customer service and detect fraud
LONDON – 26, March 2018 – Pindrop, the pioneer in voice security and authentication, has today announced that Shop Direct, which operates digital department stores including Very.co.uk and Littlewoods.com, will become the first etailer in Europe to introduce Phoneprinting™ technology to further protect its four million customers.
Shop Direct is undergoing a significant transformation. In 2015, catalogue production ended and it became a pureplay online retailer with a mobile-first strategy. Shop Direct is now the UK’s second largest pureplay digital retailer and uses contact centres for customer service enquiries and to help customers manage their credit accounts.
Pindrop’s technology will empower Shop Direct’s contact centre colleagues to further lessen the time it takes for authentication to help the company deliver an even more efficient customer experience.
Pindrop’s patented Phoneprinting™ technology creates an ‘audio fingerprint’ of each call by analysing over 1,380 unique call features, such as voice, location, background noise, number history and call type. It highlights unusual activity, identifies potential fraud and deters fraudulent callers. It cracks down on fraudulent tactics like caller ID spoofing1, voice distortion2 and social engineering3 with no need for customers to provide any additional information.
The partnership comes following a sixth successive record-breaking Christmas at the business. Shop Direct increased group revenue by 6.3% year-on-year for the seven weeks up to and including 22 December 2017 – driven by 16.8% year-on-year growth at Very.
Neil Chandler, CEO of Financial Services at Shop Direct, said: “Protecting our customers is our priority and investing in technology like this is one of the ways we can stay a step ahead of fraudsters. Our partnership with Pindrop will let us further strengthen our security, whilst reducing call times for customers.”
According to Pindrop® Labs research, one in every 491 calls to a retail contact centre is fraudulent. Yet, many anti-fraud and authentication solutions just aren’t up to the task of fending off aggressive fraudsters. Shop Direct’s partnership with Pindrop and Aeriandi – voice security provider – will offer multi-factor protection for customers on the phone. Pindrop’s technology has so far helped Shop Direct further increase its detection rates for phone fraud.
Nick Gaubitch, Research Director EMEA, Pindrop said: “Our Phoneprinting™ technology identifies and analyses a call’s audio technology in real-time to indicate if a caller is suspicious. The technology can also identify multiple callers associated with the same phone number, allowing the detection and tracking of fraud rings. This shines a spotlight on fraudulent activity in e-tail before it becomes an issue – for both Shop Direct and its customers – and above all ensures a positive customer experience.”
To learn more about Pindrop’s anti-fraud and authentication solutions, visit https://pindropsec.wpengine.com/solutions/
Notes to Editors
1 Caller ID spoofing: A call that has been disguised to make it appear to come from a different phone or location.
2 Voice distortion: When a fraudster uses technology to alter their voice.
3 Social engineering: Manipulating victims into giving up confidential information that can then be used by fraudsters.
4Statistics as a result of Pindrop® Protect solution trial
About Pindrop
Pindrop® solutions are leading the way to the future of voice by establishing the standard for security, identity, and trust for every voice interaction. Pindrop solutions protect some of the biggest banks, insurers, and retailers in the world using patented technology that extracts an unrivalled amount of intelligence from every call encountered. Pindrop solutions help detect fraudsters and authenticate callers, reducing fraud and operational costs, while improving customer experience and protecting brand reputation. Pindrop, a privately held company, headquartered in Atlanta, GA, was founded in 2011 and is venture-backed by Andreessen Horowitz, Citi Ventures, Felicis Ventures, CapitalG, GV, and IVP. For more information, please visit pindrop.com.