Time-Domain Voice Identity Morphing (TD-VIM): A Signal-Level Approach to Morphing Attacks on Speaker Verification Systems
Abstract
In biometric systems, it is a common practice to associate each sample or template with a specific individual. Nevertheless, recent studies have demonstrated the feasibility of generating "morphed" biometric samples capable of matching multiple identities. These morph attacks have been recognized as potential security risks for biometric systems. However, most research on morph attacks has focused on biometric modalities that operate within the image domain, such as the face, fingerprints, and iris. In this work, we introduce Time-domain Voice Identity Morphing (TD-VIM), a novel approach for voice-based biometric morphing. This method enables the blending of voice characteristics from two distinct identities at the signal level, creating morphed samples that present a high vulnerability for speaker verification systems. Leveraging the Multilingual Audio-Visual Smartphone database, our study created four distinct morphed signals based on morphing factors and evaluated their effectiveness using a comprehensive vulnerability analysis. To assess the security impact of TD-VIM, we benchmarked our approach using the Generalized Morphing Attack Potential (G-MAP) metric, measuring attack success across two deep-learning-based Speaker Verification Systems (SVS) and one commercial system, Verispeak. Our findings indicate that the morphed voice samples achieved a high attack success rate, with G-MAP values reaching 99.40% on iPhone-11 and 99.74% on Samsung S8 in text-dependent scenarios, at a false match rate of 0.1%.
The following analysis is generated by AI and may contain errors. It is separate from the authors’ abstract and is not peer review.
Research summary
This paper introduces TD-VIM, a novel voice morphing technique that significantly enhances the vulnerability of speaker verification systems, thereby emphasizing the urgent need for improved security protocols in biometric applications. The comprehensive methodology and rigorous experimental validation contribute valuable insights to the field of biometric security and machine learning.
Methodology
The proposed Time-Domain Voice Identity Morphing (TD-VIM) method innovatively operates at the signal level, allowing for morphing without reliance on feature embeddings or reference text, which addresses limitations found in previous methods. The methodology is well-structured, with clear steps for speaker selection, signal processing, and morphing, making it accessible for replication.
Results & evaluation
The experiments utilize a robust dataset (MAVS) and benchmark the TD-VIM against multiple speaker verification systems, demonstrating high attack success rates. The use of the Generalized Morphing Attack Potential (G-MAP) metric is a significant contribution, providing a comprehensive measure of vulnerability across different devices and languages.
Reproducibility
The authors provide a GitHub repository for the source code and state that the morphed files and original dataset can be obtained upon request, promoting transparency and reproducibility.
Limitations
The study does not address the potential ethical implications of morphing techniques in biometric security, nor does it explore the long-term effectiveness of the proposed method against evolving SVS technologies. Additionally, the reliance on specific datasets may limit generalizability.
Broader impact
The findings highlight significant vulnerabilities in voice biometric systems, particularly in sensitive applications such as banking and finance, raising awareness about the need for enhanced security measures in biometric verification systems. This paper introduces TD-VIM, a novel voice morphing technique that significantly enhances the vulnerability of speaker verification systems, thereby emphasizing the urgent need for improved security protocols in biometric applications. The comprehensive methodology and rigorous experimental validation contribute valuable insights to the field of biometric security and machine learning.
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