Fingerprint information has been around since 1901 when it was introduced at Scotland Yard. Every since it was introduced it has played a key role with law enforcement and crimes.
Everyone has a fingerprint on the tip of their fingers and every persons fingerprint is different. They are different because of the curves and ridges that make up a fingerprint. In order for someone to get a copy of the fingerprint the finger is usually rolled in black ink. Once the ink is on the finger tip the finger is then rolled on really heavy paper in order to leave an impression. In most cases the fingerprint is then scanned into a machine with your name for safe keeping and held in the FBI database.
Fingerprint information is used for many different things in helping to identify a person. When a crime is committed the authorities will come to the scene and look for any fingerprints that might have been left behind. If there are any fingerprints found then they are dusted and lifted off of the item and scanned through their system. If a match is made then they will be able to determine the suspect they need to find.
Fingerprint information can be used for identifying remains of people if they were involved in a bad tragedy. The information can also be used to help identify missing people or even people with amnesia that are wondering around lost.
Even though no one has the same fingerprints there are only three different types. A person will have either loop patterns, arch patterns or whorl patterns. These classifications help detectives when they are trying to match prints with a name.
If a person does not have fingers there are other ways to still get the prints from a person. A footprint or a palm print works the same way that fingerprint information is used. Any of these three prints will hold up in court if a person is being convicted of a crime.
It does not matter what country a crime is committed in when a person is arrested and booked the first thing that will be done is taking the persons fingerprints. From this point on the fingerprint information is stored and can be compared any time there is a need to look for a match on some prints that have been lifted from a crime scene.
There are many businesses in the United States that require a person leave a thumb print on various documents. The prints could be for the armed forces, government employees for receiving clearance into other parts of the building, banks require a thumb print before cashing a check and even some states require the print on the drivers license.