At last, the never-ending lists of passwords and Pins (which banks tell us we must never write down but which millions of us do) are to be consigned to history

No more scratching of heads trying to recall a “memorable place” or the “name of your first pet”

Instead, if we want to speak to our bank or make a payment, we will verify our identities simply by speaking, or by presenting our fingerprint to a sensor

At least, that is the promising glimpse into the future

Yesterday Barclays became Britain’s first bank to offer “voice recognition” access to customers using phone banking.

To sign up, users will say several phrases over the phone, which the bank’s systems will analyse and store, with tone, pitch, cadence and gaps between words among the vocal attributes analysed.

When that customer calls again, instead of going through a tedious series of security questions, they will be asked to say something which will be checked against their digital “voiceprint”

The new technology was promoted by Joanna Lumley, whose voice was analysed as she recited the proverb “you can lead a horse to water but you cannot make him drink”