Finger and voice verification for access to social grants
With the high rate of grant fraud, beneficiaries of social grants will need to prove that they are still alive by undergoing monthly verification processes before their grants are paid out.
According to the South Africa Social Security Agency (SASSA), social grants will only be paid out after a fingerprint or voice verification has been done.
Both beneficiaries who utilise pin codes to access their social grants and those who access their grants from an ATM will only be able to activate their funds following a voice or fingerprint biometric authentication.
This process is called Proof of Life Certification, and must be completed on a monthly basis.
For fingerprint verification, beneficiaries may visit any SASSA paypoint or a store with fingerprint scanners before collecting their grants every month.
According to SASSA spokesperson Dudu Ngobeni, voice activation will be conducted in two phases.
“Phase one will target 1.5-million beneficiaries who have been accessing their grants using ATMs.
“They will be sent an SMS message and those who have not received an SMS should not panic as their grant will still be paid,” says Ngobeni.
He says phase two will be implemented in March for all beneficiaries utilising pin codes.
“Beneficiaries that have received an SMS, but are unable to call due to ill-health must appoint a procurator. Home visits will be conducted where the procurator and beneficiary must be present for the voice recording of the procurator,” he explains.
Beneficiaries that are using pin codes, but have not recorded their voice are urged to visit their nearest SASSA office for a voice recording.
For any further queries regarding Proof of Life Certification you may contact the CPS Call Centre on 0800 60 01 60.
