Several British insurance companies have begun using lie-detection software to identify policyholders who fabricate or exaggerate claims when reporting losses from a theft or an accident.  In April, Halifax General Insurance, one of the largest insurers in the United Kingdom, said that it would use the software to screen all theft claims and the British subsidiaries of two large European insurers, Allianz AG and Zurich Financial Services, began testing the voice-risk analysis software in March.  The software measures variations in the voice of a caller to detect uncertainty, stress or fear beyond the level that would ordinarily be caused by a theft or other trauma.  The software, developed by Nemesyco Ltd., in the late 1990s for Israeli security forces, differs from traditional polygraphs in that it can be used over the telephone.  Early reports from U.K. insurers say that the system can be an important tool for lowering fraud costs.

May 18, 2004