Spy Technology Shifts Its Aim...
Scotland - Spy technology is to be used to catch out Edinburgh benefit cheats by listening in on telephone conversations.
Voice risk analysis software will be used by council workers to detect changes in callers' voices to give an indication of levels of stress.
Callers' normal voices will be recorded at the beginning of calls and compared with how they sound after they are asked to supply evidence to support their claims.
A similar scheme in Harrow, north London, caught out 173 benefit cheats between May and July this year, saving around £110,000.
Lie detecting experts said the technology - which is widely used in the insurance industry - was not entirely reliable. But Councillor Gordon Mackenzie, the city's finance leader, said it would act as a deterrent to would-be cheats. (more)
Next step... councillors calling home to ask spouses a few questions?
