Encyclopedia > Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System
The Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System (IAFIS) is a national fingerprint and criminal history system maintained by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The IAFIS provides automated fingerprint search capabilities, latent searching capability, electronic image storage, and electronic exchange of fingerprints and responses. The IAFIS maintains the largest biometric database in the world, containing the fingerprints and corresponding criminal history information for more than 47 million subjects in the Criminal Master File. A fingerprint is an imprint made by the pattern of ridges on the pad of a human finger. ... Official FBI Seal The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is a Federal police force which is the principal investigative arm of the United States Department of Justice (DOJ). ... At Disney World, biometric measurements are taken of the fingers of multi-day pass users to ensure that the pass is used by the same person from day to day. ...
Fingerprints are voluntarily submitted to the FBI by local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies. These agencies acquire the fingerprints through criminal arrests or from non-criminal sources, such as employment background checks. The FBI then catalogs the fingerprints along with any criminal history linked with the subject.
Law enforcement agencies can then request a search in IAFIS to identify fingerprints taken during criminal investigations. Civil searches are also performed, however the FBI charges a small fee and the response time is slower.
External links
Federal Bureau of Investigation - CJIS Divison - Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System
The IntegratedAutomatedFingerprintIdentificationSystem (IAFIS) is a national fingerprint and criminal history system maintained by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
The IAFIS maintains the largest biometric database in the world, containing the fingerprints and corresponding criminal history information for more than 47 million subjects in the Criminal Master File.
Fingerprints are voluntarily submitted to the FBI by local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies.