Voice Biometrics Case Study – Union Pacific Railroad

In 2001, the Union Pacific Railroad deployed a customer-facing voice biometrics system to automate the release of empty railcars. The system was powered by SpeechWorks’ SpeechSecure product. [Note: SpeechWorks was acquired by Nuance in 2003.]

A 2004 whitepaper issued by the SANS Institute, provided the following description of the railroad's application:

“Union Pacific moves railcars back and forth across the United States every day. The railcars travel loaded in one direction and empty on the way back. When the loaded railcar arrives, the customer is notified to come pick up the contents. Once emptied, the customer needs to alert Union Pacific to put the railcar back to work. Union Pacific now has an automated system that utilizes voice authentication to allow a customer to release empty railcars. Customers enroll in the voice authentication system over the phone. When they call back to release an empty railcar, the system authenticates them and allows them to release their railcars. In this case, voice authentication has allowed customers to get off the phone faster, and Union Pacific to guarantee that a customer is not releasing a railcar that doesn’t belong to him.”

When a customer called the railroad's IVR, they were given the option to enroll in the system (i.e., provide a “base” voiceprint). Once enrolled, a customer could verify their identity by providing a “sample” voiceprint. If the voiceprints matched, the customer’s empty railcar was released. If the voiceprints did not match, the customer was transferred to a live agent.

Does anyone know if this application is still in use by the Union Pacific Railroad?