Is Fingerprint Analysis the Real Deal or Just Expensive Fortune-Telling? Our Investigation Says It All
In pursuit of accuracy, a Dân trí reporter participated in a fingerprint analysis session in Hanoi. The results were a mix of vague generalizations and bizarre predictions about career paths, health issues, and even advice on medication usage. The question remains: is this “science” or just a costly digital palm reading?
Spending Millions on Digital Fortune-Telling
Simply searching for “fingerprint analysis” online yields over a million results in less than 40 seconds, with countless websites offering to analyze your fingerprints to reveal your hidden talents. The services are marketed with grandiose claims, and prices range from one million to tens of millions of dong, depending on whether you’re analyzing just one person or the entire family.
Posing as a parent interested in fingerprint analysis for a child, we contacted a center named B… with branches in both Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi. The staff informed us that the cost of a fingerprint analysis session was three million dong.
The salesperson eagerly added, “Children as young as 12 months can have their fingerprints taken. Within 48 hours, you’ll receive a detailed report along with guidance on how to enhance your child’s learning and development. This analysis highlights your child’s strengths and weaknesses, making it easier for you to tailor your teaching methods. If you provide your contact details and your child’s information, we can sign you up for a promotion where you’ll get a free analysis of four fingers.”
At another fingerprint analysis center in Đống Đa District, Hanoi, the pricing structure was even more diverse. Depending on the number of family members, the cost ranged from one million to 6.8 million dong. For an individual analysis, the fee was 2.8 million dong per person.
Our reporter goes through the fingerprint analysis process.
At a center in Cầu Giấy District, touted as the leading fingerprint analysis center in Vietnam, we were met with bold claims. They boasted of a 95% accuracy rate, supposedly higher than all other centers combined.
However, the price was steep. A single session at this center cost 5,600,000 VND per person. A promotional rate brought it down to 3,380,000 VND per person. Home visits for fingerprint collection and result interpretation added an extra 600,000 VND, bringing the total to 3,980,000 VND per session.
The “Mechanic” Prediction: Our Reporter’s Bizarre Career Forecast
To test the validity of fingerprint analysis, the Dân trí reporter underwent a session at a center in Đống Đa District. After a brief questionnaire and a rundown of pricing, two staff members guided us through the process. They scanned all ten of our fingerprints using a small scanner connected to a computer. The next step involved applying a black adhesive substance to our palms to measure the ATD angle (a palm crease measurement).
Once the fingerprints were scanned, they were digitally processed to generate a report. The center promised to deliver the results within three to four days, along with a detailed consultation on the findings.
When the results came back, they were compiled into a 10-page report filled with confusing conclusions. To make sense of it, the center’s staff provided an interpretation session where they explained the results in layman’s terms. The predictions were vague at best.
Surprisingly, the report suggested that the reporter was suited for various professions, ranging from actor, martial artist, and yoga instructor to sculptor, nurse, mechanic, and even firefighter and acupuncturist. It also predicted that the reporter was prone to allergies—a condition they had never experienced.
Even more puzzling was the health advice, which recommended the reporter reduce meat consumption and use herbal medicines instead of conventional ones—a suggestion that contradicts medical science, which requires personalized prescriptions based on an individual’s specific health conditions.
The Science (or Lack Thereof) Behind Fingerprint Analysis
The center’s director claimed that fingerprint analysis has been around for a long time. They cited examples such as the FBI using fingerprint analysis for criminal profiling and its application in education and career guidance in Malaysia and Singapore.
They asserted that by analyzing the ridge patterns on all ten fingers and the palm, it’s possible to map out the neural distribution in the brain. These patterns supposedly correspond to various brain functions, allowing experts to assess a person’s innate abilities and guide their education and career choices.
Despite the centers’ glowing advertisements about the supposed benefits of fingerprint analysis, many reputable scientists argue that spending millions on what essentially amounts to digital fortune-telling is a waste of money. Instead, they suggest that families invest in their children’s education and health based on their interests and well-being, rather than on dubious predictions from a computer.
