Police invest in new biometrics technology

20 July 2011

Posted by Samuel Couratin

A new fingerprinting system is to be rolled out across the UK police service in order to identify individuals more quickly.

The biometrics technology will be provided to forces to enable them to operate identity checks on the beat within minutes, without having to return to stations, the National Policing Improvement Agency (NPIA) has announced.

According to the organization, the mobile devices can be used by officers on the move and police will use the Mobile Identification (MobileID) service to check fingerprints against the IDENTI national database.

Currently being rolled out to forces in England and Wales following field trials, the solution does not retain biometric information following a search and could boost the number of offenders brought to justice, the NPIA claims.

The agency's Director of Operations, Tom McArthur, said: "Identification is crucial to police investigations and giving officers the ability to do this on-the-spot within minutes is giving them more time to spend working in their communities."

Last month, the new Police National Database was introduced to enhance intelligence sharing across forces and crime-fighting organizations.