Can you trust Erica, Sandy and Amy to control some aspects of your financial life without giving you inaccurate information or sending money to the wrong place?
That’s what the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau says in a report released on Tuesday, which said it has spoken about the increasing use of chatbots by banks to handle routine customer service requests. express concern.
The CFPB is concerned that banks and loan service providers could cut their human customer service representatives and force AI to do an ever-increasing number of day-to-day tasks. Additionally, regulators say poorly designed chatbots can violate federal laws governing how debts are collected and how personal information is used.
In an interview with The Associated Press, CFPB director Rohit Chopra said there is a high risk of widespread harm to customers if companies fail to implement such services properly.
In recent years, banks have increasingly used chatbots to handle customer service requests, many with feminine names like Sandy of Santander, Amy of HSBC and Eno of Capital One.
Bank of America operates the largest and most successful financial chatbot under the Erica brand. Erica, the last of his five letters in America, currently handles hundreds of millions of inquiries annually from BofA clients.
Initially, bank chatbots were used for basic inquiries, such as changing a customer’s address or phone number, telling them the location of their nearest branch, or routing numbers for their accounts. But as banks invest millions of dollars in these services, chatbots become particularly sophisticated, capable of understanding full text and even helping customers move money and pay bills. became.
The CFPB estimates that about four in 10 Americans used bank chatbots last year, and expects that number to increase.
Banks are preparing to roll out even more advanced AI-like services. JPMorgan Chase is reportedly planning to use ChatGPT and artificial intelligence to help clients choose the right investments. Bank of America bankers could potentially use Erica to build customer profiles and recommend products to those customers.
While these services may save customers from waiting minutes to hours before contacting a human for routine questions, government agencies are concerned that these chatbots may be inaccurate to customers. I am concerned about whether the nuances and complex nature of consumer protection laws can be handled without providing relevant information.
If there are federal laws that give customers rights over debt and transaction disputes, and customer service agents are used instead of chatbots, problems can arise if the software provides inaccurate information. , Chopra said.
The agency also found that older customers and customers whose primary language is not English could be stuck in a customer service loop and unable to reach a human agent.
He said he repeatedly found complaints of customers getting into circular arguments with robots or getting incorrect information.
Chopra, who currently serves on the CFPB Board of Directors and previously served on the Federal Trade Commission, has said that if banks and companies are poorly equipped with algorithms and artificial intelligence software, consumer law will continue to grow. has repeatedly expressed concern that it may violate There have been numerous reports of chatbots from Microsoft, Google and other companies using biased language in response to requests.
