VocalPrint: A mmWave-Based Unmediated Vocal Sensing System for Secure Authentication

With the continuing growth of voice-controlled devices, voice metrics have been widely used for user identification. However, voice biometrics is vulnerable to replay attacks and ambient noise. We identify that the fundamental vulnerability in voice biometrics is rooted in its indirect sensing modality (e.g., microphone). In this paper, we present VocalPrint, a resilient mmWave interrogation system which directly captures and analyzes the vocal vibrations for user authentication. Specifically, VocalPrint exploits the unique disturbance of the skin-reflect radio frequency (RF) signals around the near-throat region of the user, caused by the vocal vibrations. The complex ambient noise is isolated from the RF signal using a novel resilience-aware clutter suppression approach for preserving fine-grained vocal biometric properties. Afterward, we extract the vocal tract and vocal source features and input them into an ensemble classifier for authentication. VocalPrint is practical as it allows the effortless transition to a smartphone while having sufficient usability due to its non-contact nature. Our experimental results from 41 participants with different interrogation distances, orientations, and body motions show that VocalPrint achieves over 96 percent authentication accuracy even under unfavorable conditions. We demonstrate the resilience of our system against complex noise interference and spoof attacks of various threat levels.

Automated summary

With the increasing use of voice-controlled devices, voice metrics have become popular for user identification. However, voice biometrics are susceptible to replay attacks and ambient noise. In this paper, the authors present VocalPrint, a mmWave interrogation system that directly captures and analyzes vocal vibrations for user authentication. By exploiting the disturbance in radio frequency signals caused by vocal vibrations around the near-throat area, VocalPrint is able to isolate ambient noise and preserve fine-grained vocal biometric properties. Experimental results demonstrate the resilience of VocalPrint against complex noise interference and spoof attacks, achieving over 96 percent authentication accuracy even under unfavorable conditions.