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What is a voiceprint
A voiceprint is another way to use your unique features to identify who you are, similar to a fingerprint.
A voiceprint uses distinctive features in your voice, including its sound, rhythm and pattern. We use your recorded voiceprint to securely prove your identity when you call us.
Creating a voiceprint is optional.
What you can do with your voiceprint
With a voiceprint, you:
- can prove your identity faster when you call us
- can use Centrelink phone self service
- don’t need to use or remember your Personal Identification Number (PIN)
- don’t need to answer security questions when you call us.
If you have a nominee, they can’t record a voiceprint on your behalf.
How to create your voiceprint
Create your voiceprint by phoning Centrelink.
1. Get ready to create your voiceprint
Have your Customer Access Number (CAN) ready, or your Customer Reference Number (CRN) if you don’t have a CAN.
If a service officer gave you a temporary PIN, have that ready too.
If you don’t have a PIN, have your identity documents ready so a service officer can finalise your voiceprint enrolment.
You may need details such as your:
- Health Care Card or Pension Card
- drivers licence
- bank account details
- most recent payment details.
2. Create your voiceprint
When you phone Centrelink, make sure there is no background noise so we can record your voiceprint.
If you don’t have a PIN, follow these steps to create your voiceprint:
- Phone us on your regular payment line.
- Listen to our recorded messages.
- Enter your CAN or CRN if you don’t have a CAN.
- When offered a voiceprint, say ‘Yes’.
- Repeat this phrase 3 times, ‘In Australia, my voice identifies me’.
- Wait on the line so that a service officer can confirm and finalise your voiceprint enrolment.
If you got a temporary PIN from a service officer, follow these steps to create your voiceprint:
- Phone us on the Centrelink Phone Self Service Line.
- Listen to our recorded messages.
- Enter your CAN or CRN followed by your temporary PIN.
- Accept the offer of voiceprint by saying ‘Yes’.
- Repeat this phrase 3 times, ‘In Australia, my voice identifies me’.
3. Start using your voiceprint
The next time you call Centrelink or Child Support to use your voiceprint:
- Phone us on your regular payment line.
- Enter your CAN, CRN or Child Support ID number.
- When asked to prove your identity, repeat the phrase ‘In Australia, my voice identifies me’.
When we answer your call, we can see you used your voiceprint to confirm your identity.
To use your voiceprint with Centrelink phone self service lines:
- Phone the Centrelink Phone Self Service Line or Centrelink reporting line.
- Enter your CAN or CRN if you don’t have a CAN.
- When asked to prove your identity, repeat the phrase ‘In Australia, my voice identifies me’.
How we protect your voiceprint
A voiceprint is secure, accurate and reliable.
Every time you use your voiceprint our system checks your voice against the voiceprint you created. It uses secure technologies to hear parts of your voice that the human ear doesn’t.
When you’ve created your voiceprint, you can use it each time you call us, even if:
- there’s background noise
- your accent has changed
- your voice has changed
- you have a cold.
It’s very difficult for someone to access your personal information. The system can tell if someone is pretending to be you or using a recording of your voice. If this happens, they won’t be able to use the voiceprint to access your records.
Read more about how we protect your privacy.
How to delete your voiceprint
You can ask us to delete your voiceprint at any time.
To delete your voiceprint, phone us on your regular payment line and speak to our staff.
We’ll keep the recording used to enrol your voiceprint. We may use it for security and integrity purposes.
Once we delete your voiceprint, it can’t be used to access your records.
Our Privacy Policy outlines what kinds of personal and sensitive information we collect, why we collect this information, and how we handle it.