Livescan (or Live Scan) refers to both the technique an the technology used by law enforcement agencies and private facilities to capture fingerprints and palm prints electronically, without the need for the more traditional method of ink and paper. In the UK, many major police custody suites are now equipped with Livescan machines, which allows for suspects fingerprints to be instantly compared with a national database, IDENT1, and a result gained in a very short space of time, usually not longer than ten minutes.