FB pixel

90-minute DNA testing gets a look by London’s Met

Categories Biometrics News  |  Law Enforcement
90-minute DNA testing gets a look by London’s Met
 

Rapid DNA biometric profiling — in under two hours — has jumped the North Atlantic from the United States. London’s Metropolitan Police Service has begun a six-month trial of the handheld technology.

DNA, the most comprehensive biometric identifier, has helped find criminals and exonerate the wrongly accused globally for decades. Until recently, the turnaround on results was measured in days, often more than a week.

Fraser Sampson, the UK’s Biometrics Commissioner, posted a video clip in which he describes “real-time testing of DNA,” but is closer to 90 minutes. Neither he nor the Met have released any details other than the contractor has a lab in Lambert.

Sampson says he has had a cheek swab and received the results in two hours. He said the development is like “sending the science to the scene” of a crime. Ordinarily, the evidence would travel a lengthy path to a lab before results are delivered to the police.

Without offering any corroborating information, The Times has reported that “at least one offender” has been arrested for “historical offences.”

In February, the U.S. Homeland Security department reported on its rapid DNA pilot for verifying parent-child relationships. It is unclear what contractor was hired to supply the system. Also, while it seems the system in place can deliver results in 90 minutes, the department is sending swabs away for 24-hour service.

Thermo Fisher Scientific offers a 90-minute DNA processing solution. Among its customers is the Bensalem Township, Penn., police department.

Article Topics

 |   |   |   |   |   |   |   |   |   | 

Latest Biometrics News

 

Biometrics and injection detection for deepfake defense a rising priority

Biometrics integrations with injection attack detection to defend the latest front in the global battle against fraud, deepfakes, is the…

 

Biometric Update Podcast looks at the road to a global standard for age assurance

Episode 2 of the Biometric Update Podcast is a dispatch from the 2025 Global Age Assurance Standards Summit, held from…

 

WEF launches new DPI initiative focused on emerging tech, including biometrics

Global Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) initiatives are lagging behind emerging technologies such as AI, which could lead to inefficiencies, bottlenecks…

 

Odds are good for biometrics firms in the global gambling sector

Gambling has always been a vice associated with certain kinds of criminal activity, but the development of the online gambling…

 

New Zealand issues tender for digital ID services accreditation infrastructure

New Zealand’s accredited digital identity services regulator, the Trust Framework Authority (TFA), has published a request for information (RFI) for…

 

Pindrop surpasses $100M in annual recurring revenue, kicks off BU podcast

A release from Atlanta-based voice biometrics firm Pindrop celebrates a milestone: the firm has surpassed US$100 million in Annual Recurring…

Comments

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Market Analysis

Most Viewed This Week

Featured Company

Biometrics Insight, Opinion

Digital ID In-Depth

Biometrics White Papers

Biometrics Events