First Direct - what are the security questions?

The_Groat_Counter

I forgot whatever security answers I gave when I set my First Direct account up a few years back.

Recently when I called up to speak to an FD agent this became apparent (the scrap of paper that I thought held obscure reminders to the answers was of no help!) - so after passing through security using other methods, the agent offered to switch on 'voice fingerprinting' to establish my identity for when I call in the future. I accepted this, with some unspoken reservations.

However I don't feel entirely comfortable about 'voice fingerprinting', especially in the age of developing voice AI cloning - though I'll add that I'm not especially wealthy, nor is my voice 'out there' as e.g. a radio DJ / notable public speaker / YouTuber etc, so it's really more of an (unlikely) theoretical risk.

I'd like to call up and reset my security questions and answers so my account security is no longer reliant on the voice fingerprint, but before doing so it'd be good to know what security questions the FD system is set up with so I can think up some decent answers that are neither too obvious but also ones I won't forget!

I have a feeling there's perhaps two or three security question/answer sets, with one maybe being an all digits passcode, and another perhaps being a choice of different questions (e.g. place of birth, memorable teacher etc) or even possibly a freeform question of your own devising.

Can anyone offer any insight? Many thanks.

born_again

Best bet would be to ring up, go through voice ID. Then ask to reset security. Should not be a issue.

pretty sure (left FD as a customer a few years ago)

2 factual

2/3 memorable

letters out of password.

This is part of the problem these days with biometric security.

You really have to have physical security recorded somewhere. 🤷‍♀️

grumpy_codger

In my password manager I have two security questions/answers recorded for FD: alias and currency. I think these are two from about five available to chose from.

flaneurs_lobster

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81958940#Comment_81958940

Mine are (checks password manager)

Street grew up on

Pet

First car

The answers are (of course) not true but are actual words rather than random characters I use elsewhere since these answers are designed to be disclosed over the phone, and telling an operator that your first pet's name was %xu%9u1GJ takes much longer than "Fluffy".

I *think* I set up voice ID at FD, don't think I've ever used it.

35har1old

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81959044#Comment_81959044

Usally not the whole word just a choice of characters

Grumpy_chap

FWIW, when I had voice ID with FD, it was a very unreliable feature and it also did not reduce the need to go through the security questions exactly the same as if you did not have voice ID, so it was just an extra overlay.

I was regularly rejected, despite answering the questions correctly as any number of factors could mean I failed the voice ID - having a cold, being outside (wind noise, road noise, plane flying over, whatever), poor mobile connection. It was so unreliable, I got the voice ID disabled.

Voice ID may have improved since I gave up on it.

At least having to do the security questions anyway overcomes the issues that have been reported in other threads in the forum of one bank using the phrase "my voice is my password" and people apparently being copied for that phrase so losing security.

Chief_of_Staffy

You know that you don't need your answers to match the questions, right? So if you were born in York and it asks "Where were you born?", it's not only unnecessary to answer 'York', it's actually a security risk being that someone might know it. Answer 'Rabbits' instead, or 'Terminator 2'.

Yorkie1

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81959565#Comment_81959565

That never occured to me!

boingy

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81959565#Comment_81959565

But it does make it quite easy to get wrong and to forget when they ask you for it in 10 years time.

I have 3 different passwords for one FD account. One is a phone password, can't remember the difference between the other two - possibly website and app. I rang them for the first time in years and when she asked for character "x" of my password. I confidently said "4" and she said that the phone password can only be letters, not numbers. So I had to jump through half a million hoops to regain access to the account.

But I'm also not very trusting of voice ID . Microsoft claim their AI tool, "VALL-E", can clone your voice from just 3 seconds of speech. Scary stuff.

flaneurs_lobster

I have 3 different passwords for one FD account. One is a phone password, can't remember the difference between the other two - possibly website and app. I rang them for the first time in years and when she asked for character "x" of my password. I confidently said "4" and she said that the phone password can only be letters, not numbers. So I had to jump through half a million hoops to regain access to the account.

I have those passwords too, and around 900 others.

Password Manager.

boingy

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81960087#Comment_81960087

Yup, I use one too. The problem was I hadn't labelled the passwords with their function, so I had three just called "password".