Pre-authentication system and method for outgoing communication

• US 9,591,127 B1
• Filed: 02/02/2015
• Issued: 03/07/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 04/24/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Wells Fargo Bank NA (Wells Fargo & Company)
• Original Assignee: Wells Fargo Bank NA (Wells Fargo & Company)
• Inventors: Simon, Charlie Aziz, Mou, Jacob Mine
• Primary Examiner(s): Huynh, Van D
• Application Number:
  US14/611,494
• Time in Patent Office: 764 Days
• Field of Search: 379 8801- 8802, 379/88.04, 379/265.02, 704/270, 705/44
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/02 Banking, e.g. interest calculation or account maintenance credit or loans G06Q40/03
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/105 Financial transactions and auctions, e.g. bidding auctioneering devices in packet switching networks H04L12/1804
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/2027 Live party detection
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/6072 Authentication using challenger response
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2242/18 Automated outdialling systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/385 using speech signals
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4936 Speech interaction details speech recognition per se G10L15/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5158 in combination with automated outdialling systems devices for signalling identity of wanted subscriber H04M1/26
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5166 in combination with interactive voice response systems or voice portals, e.g. as front-ends

Abstract

An automated calling system authenticates and subsequently communicates via a telephone network with a person such as a current or prospective customer. The communication may be in regards to an account having an adverse account status (e.g. a payment delinquency, an overdrawn checking account, being over the credit limit on a credit card, excessive transactions on one account, suspicious or fraudulent transactions on an account, and so on).

Claims

1. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having machine instructions stored therein, the instructions being executable by a processor to cause the processor to perform operations for communicating with a customer via a telephone call, the operations comprising:

initiating a telephone call to the customer to remediate an adverse account condition of a first account held by the customer;

determining an amount of funds in a second account held by the customer; and

generating a settlement option to transfer funds from the second account, based on the determining that the second account has sufficient funds, to remediate the adverse account condition of the first account.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the operations include electronically generating a speech signal for transmission to the customer over a telephone network during the telephone call.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising authenticating a person to determine whether the person called is the customer.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the authenticating includes at least one prompting, wherein the prompting includes prompting a person to indicate whether the person is the customer by asking the person whether the person is the customer by a speech signal, prompting the person to provide a keypad input, prompting a person to provide a voice sample, and prompting the person to provide a correct answer to a security question.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

receiving an input from the person responsive to at least one of the prompting;

assessing validity of the input to either authenticate the person as the customer or to determine that the person is not the customer;

if the person that answered the telephone call is not the customer, then proceeding with the telephone call without transferring the telephone call to a human agent by electronically generating the speech signal for the person that answered the telephone call; and

if the person that answered the telephone call is the customer as determined by receiving a valid input, then transferring the telephone call to the human agent.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising selecting the customer to be called prior to initiating the telephone call, wherein the customer is selected to be called based on the customer having an account with an adverse account condition.

7. A method for processing a telephone call, comprising:

initiating, using an automated calling system comprising a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having machine instructions stored therein, the instructions being executable by a processor, the telephone call to an account holder of a banking institution in response to the account holder having at least one account with an adverse account status;

determining, by the automated calling system, whether the telephone call has been answered by a live voice or an answering machine;

transferring, by the automated calling system, the telephone call to a banking institution live agent in a case where a live voice was detected, and upon a successful authentication, determining an amount of funds in a second account held by the customer and generating a settlement option to transfer funds from the second account, based on the determining that the second account has sufficient funds, to remediate the adverse account condition of the first account.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising selecting the account holder to be called prior to initiating the telephone call, wherein the account holder is selected to be called based on the account holder having an account with an adverse account status, wherein the adverse account status comprises a checking account being overdrawn, and wherein the checking account and the second account are managed by a same financial institution.

9. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

determining, by the automated calling system, that the telephone call was answered by the answering machine, and

playing, by the automated calling system, a voice file to be recorded as a message on the answering machine, wherein the message provides a phone number to call back.

10. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

requesting, by the automated calling system, customer identifying information by asking a security question to the account holder to authenticate in a case where a live voice is detected, and in the case where the live voice belongs to the account holder, the authenticating includes receiving a key pad input that correctly answers a security question from the account holder.

11. The method of claim 7, further comprising, upon the successful authentication:

offering the account holder a settlement amount, less than a full balance of the account with the adverse account status, and allowing the account holder to transfer funds from one or more other accounts owned by the account holder to the account with the adverse account status equal to the settlement amount.

12. The method of claim 7, wherein the determining that the telephone call has been answered by a live voice includes at least one of receiving a keypad input and a voice input responsive to a request for at least one of the keypad input and the voice input.

13. The method of claim 7, further comprising displaying account information to the banking institution live agent in a case where a live voice belongs to the account holder.

14. A computer-implemented system for communicating with a banking institution customer comprising:

a processor;

a memory device coupled to the processor, the memory device storing instructions executable by the processor, the instructions including;

automated calling logic adapted to telephone call a customer of the banking institution, the automated calling logic configured to select the customer to call based on the customer having an adverse account condition of a first account; and

account management logic configured to determine an amount of funds in a second account held by the customer and generate a settlement option to transfer funds from the second account, based on the determining that the second account has sufficient funds to remediate the adverse account condition of the first account.

15. The system of claim 14, further comprising:

an authentication logic adapted to authenticate the customer based on receiving a correct input responsive to a prompt; and

a speech signal generator configured to electronically generate a speech signal for transmission to the customer over a telephone network during the telephone call, wherein the speech signal includes the prompt.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the correct input includes at least one of a customer phone number, a customer name, a customer address, a customer zip code, a customer personal identification number, a correct answer to a secret question, an account number corresponding to the first account, an account number corresponding to the second account, and a dollar amount in at least one of the first and second accounts.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the automated calling logic is configured to route the telephone call to a live agent of the banking institution upon a successful authentication of the customer.

18. The system of claim 15, wherein the adverse account status comprises at least one of a checking account being overdrawn, and wherein the checking account and the second account are managed by a same financial institution.

19. The system of claim 15, wherein the automated calling logic is configured to determine that the telephone call was answered by a live voice, wherein the determining that the telephone call has been answered by the live voice includes at least one of receiving a keypad input and a voice input responsive to a request for at least one of the keypad input and the voice input.

20. The system of claim 15, wherein the automated calling logic is configured to determine that the telephone call was answered by an answering machine, and play a voice file to be recorded as a message on the answering machine, wherein the message provides a phone number to call back.