Audio ‘fingerprinting’ technology helpsBritain’s second biggest pureplay online retailer improve customer service and detect fraud

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. At its peak, Shop Direct was issuing out 25 million catalogues in a year. 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, 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, visithttps://www.pindrop.com/solutions/