British police get mobile fingerprint scanners

Within a year and a half, many British police officers will be walking around with mobile fingerprint scanners performing identity checks. However, police say scanned prints will not be stored.

Tens of thousands of devices, reportedly about the size of a Blackberry phone, will be distributed to agents in the coming months. According to Geoff Whitaker of the National Policing Improvement Agency, the project called Mobile Identification At Scene (Midas) will reduce the pressure on the police force and also lead to fewer wrongful arrests. writes The Guardian. Currently, people have to go to the desk to check fingerprints, and the procedure takes on average over an hour. Whitaker also foresees that the device can be used for checks at sporting events or festivals, but also for traffic or border checks.

In addition to transmitting fingerprint images, the Midas devices should also be able to receive photos of suspects from police stations to help confirm identifications. It is also being considered to equip them with cameras the other way around. The police also see potential in expanding identification options with facial recognition. A tender procedure is currently underway at companies for the manufacture of the devices.