For years, agencies used an applicant's name and Social Security number to complete the check. But because Social Security numbers can be stolen or manipulated with relative ease, background investigations proved unreliable. Fingerprints, however, cannot be altered or reassigned, the sheriff said. Names and Social Security numbers also limit the investigation to convictions in Virginia, Sheriff Higgs said. But with fingerprints, the FBI can tap into a national data bank and determine whether applicants have committed crimes anywhere in the country that would prohibit them from getting the permits, he added.
Fingerprints give that assurance.
In short, fingerprinting guarantees that nobody slips through the cracks, he suggested. In random phone interviews, gun owners seemed untroubled by the proposed change. I think everybody should be fingerprinted, if it's to catch criminals. Mr. Lowenbach, a retired Fairfax County firefighter, uses a Colt .45-caliber revolver for target practice. But it won't deter me from applying.