There were a total of 19-thousand-146 reports of missing children under the age of 18 last year, according to figures from the Health and Welfare Ministry and the police.

In order to quickly find missing children, the police are offering a service to register their fingerprints through a smartphone app. It can also be utilized for seniors suffering from dementia.

Authorities said the system is effective in determining identities through fingerprint identification but added that the registration rate last year plunged due to the pandemic.

As of Tuesday, there are an estimated four-point-47 million children under 18 who have registered either their fingerprints or faces with the service.