Robotic customer service agents are provided such that, when properly authenticated, they are operable to perform a customer service task. A contact center may dispatch a robot, an accessory for a customer-owned robot, or instructions to transform an unconfigured robot, such as a generic robot, into a configured robot operable to perform the task. If the robot, such as the base or entire robot, robot at the service location, an associated user, hardware addition, and/or software addition is authentic, then the robot may be operated in an authenticated mode. If non-authenticated, then the robot may operate in a non-authenticated mode, such as one consisting of one or more tasks or features being disabled. Additionally, authentication may be temporary (e.g., time restricted) or event restricted (e.g., as long as a result stays within a given range, the robot is being observed, etc.).