FBI Biometrics

Welcome to the FBI Web site dedicated to providing the most up-to-date information regarding FBI biometric standards initiatives from the Criminal Justice Information Services Division.

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Electronic Biometric Transmission Specification (EBTS)

Proper methods for federal, state, local, tribal and international stakeholders to communicate with the FBI
Transmission of biographic, biometric, and disposition information for purposes of criminal or civil identification
Sharing of identity history information when appropriate and approved
Upgrade from theElectronic Biometric Transmission Specification (EBTS) Version 8.1 to EBTS Version 9.3 Final (Revised)
- For more information, please click “EBTS” on the left bar.
New message structures to send fingerprint at 1000ppi, palmprint, face with subject acquisition profiles, scars, marks, and tattoos, and iris biometrics

The standards process evolves with the needs of the biometric community; it improves with community feedback. Suggestions and questions are encouraged. Please submit them via the Web siteâ€™s Comments Form. In order to receive the latest updates and news, please sign up and Register for your convenience.

***Agencies transitioning from the EFTS to the new EBTS standard are encouraged to contact the FBI CJIS Biometric Services Sectionâ€™s Customer Service Group at (304) 625-5590, or via e-mail at [email protected] prior to implementation.

EBTS Version 9.3 Final (Revised) – December 9, 2011 New A revised version of EBTS 9.3 is now available to the public in PDF format with or without tracked changes. The main focus of the 9.3 release is to implement the preliminary technical changes necessary for FBI/CJIS to execute NGI Increment 3 “Investigative Friction Ridge Services.” Please reference the change history within the document for the detailed list of updates in this version. – EBTS Version 9.3 Clean Edition (Revised) (pdf) – EBTS Version 9.3 Redline Edition (Revised) (pdf) ULW v6.0 Software now available – August 8, 2011 The FBI CJIS Division is pleased to announce the release of the Universal Latent Workstation (ULW) 2011 Software. The ULW is the new generation of interoperable and interactive software for latent print examiners. This tool represents the next step on the road to total standards-based workstations providing users the ability to search various Automated Fingerprint Identification Systems and the FBI's IAFIS with a single encoding. Latent Print Services EBTS Compliance Checker updated for EBTS Version 9.2 EBTS Version 9.1 XML IEPD Final as of June 18, 2010 – EBTS Version 9.1 XML (zip file) No plans for a new release until EBTS Version 9.3.	ANSI/NIST-ITL 1-2011 – November 28, 2011 New Please click here for the new biometric standards document. Palmprint /Supplemental Guide – July 2011 Tentatively scheduled for 2014, the FBI will implement its palmprint and supplemental print searching capabilities as part of the Next Generation Identification (NGI) effort. When printing and submitting palmprints/supplementals to the FBI, please review the “Guidelines for Capturing Palmprints and Supplementals” as this will increase searching accuracies. Click here to view the “Guidelines for Capturing Palmprints and Supplementals.” Facial Identification Scientific Working Group (FISWG) Facial Image Analysis Training and One to One Facial Comparison Overview documents are approved and online. Facial Recognition System Guidelines and Glossary were recently approved and will be online soon. A draft facial image capture document was recently approved for release for public comment and will be online soon. Click here to go to FISWG site for more.