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Definition of Forensic Fingerprint Analysis

Definition of Forensic Fingerprint Analysisthumbnail
Fingerprints are exclusive to their owner.

A person's hair color, eye color, weight and general appearance can change dramatically over the years, but his fingerprints remain distinctive throughout his life. Fingerprint analysis is a long-established means of determining someone's true identity.

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    1. A Reliable Technique

      • No two fingerprints have ever been found to be identical in over a century of fingerprint analysis, states CrimTrac, an Australian government agency. Therefore, analyzing fingerprints is, for the most part, a reliable identification method.

      Whorls, Arches and Loops

      • The raised edges on the skin of someone's fingers are termed "friction ridges." The patterns of these ridges are categorized as whorls, arches or loops, and, along with other identifying features, are analyzed by a forensic fingerprint expert.

      "Lifting" Prints

      • Because perspiration is always present in friction ridges, fingerprints are generally left behind on whatever surface a person touches. Colored powders, X-rays, special lighting and other methods expose the prints, which can then be transferred via special tape or photographed.

      Ten Prints Vs. Latent Prints

      • Ten prints are fingerprints taken in a controlled environment, as in a jail during the booking of a suspect or while applying for a job at a government agency. Latent prints are prints left behind at a crime scene and require special treatment in order to be "lifted" for analysis.

      Filing Fingerprints

      • Experts in fingerprint identification at Interpol claim that up to 15 percent of the world's population has been fingerprinted. These fingerprints remain on file and create a database for matching and analyzing billions of fingerprints each day.

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    • Photo Credit fingerprint image by dip from Fotolia.com

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