The FBI is requesting information from across the country on collections of tattoos and their affiliations. The data would be added to the Bureau's Biometric Center of Excellence, which currently creates and improves databases of biometric data like fingerprints, DNA and irises.
The FBI did not immediately respond to our questions about the scope and intent of the program, but we presume a database could be compiled that would help investigators understand and cross-reference common gang-related body art, or possibly associate it with a specific location or tattoo artist.
The BCOE is publicly working to build "multimodal biometric search capability," and also to build domestic and international relationships in order to achieve its goals. In other words, it's in charge of collecting and organizing what data it can get, and arranging access to others' data.
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