The first official use of fingerprints on a large scale occurred in which year?

• A. 1880
• B. 1858
• C. 1877
• D. 1892

Answer: (B)

Fingerprints provide a durable, unique signature of a person’s identity, which is why they became valuable for identification and record-keeping. The earliest large-scale, practical use of this idea happened in 1858 when William Herschel began applying fingerprint impressions to documents in India to secure signatures and verify identity, helping to prevent forgery. This marked the first widespread application of fingerprints in real-world administration, setting the stage for later adoption by law enforcement and formal forensic use.

After that initial practice, investigators and researchers built upon the concept—Faulds and others proposed forensic uses in the following decades, and Galton helped establish the scientific basis and classification systems—leading to more standardized police use by the turn of the century. But the first broad, official use on a large scale is associated with the 1858 start.