The European court of human rights in Strasbourg ruled that keeping innocent people's DNA records on a criminal register breached the right to respect for private life, safeguarded by the Human Rights Convention, reports The Guardian.
The decision could oblige the government to order the destruction of DNA data belonging to those without criminal convictions among the approximately 4.5m records on the England, Wales and Northern Ireland database.
The home secretary, Jacqui Smith, said existing laws would remain in place while ministers considered the judgment.
"DNA and fingerprinting is vital to the fight against crime, providing the police with more than 3,500 matches a month, and I am disappointed by the European court of human rights' decision," she said.
"The government mounted a robust defence before the court and I strongly believe DNA and fingerprints play an invaluable role in fighting crime and bringing people to justice."
Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg described Smith's consideration of the ruling as "an insult".
"The judgment is totally clear, innocent people should not be made to feel like they are guilty," he said. "This demolishes the government's view that the way to fight crime is to blur the distinction between innocence and guilt.
"It is a measure of this Government's disregard for civil liberties that a European court has to fight to protect traditional British freedoms from an Orwellian database."Scotland already destroys DNA samples taken during criminal investigations from people, who are eventually not charged or who are later acquitted.
The court decision follows a lengthy legal challenge by two British men. Michael Marper, 45, was arrested in March 2001 and charged with harassing his partner, but the case was later dropped.
Separately, a 19-year-old named in court only as "S" was arrested and charged with attempted robbery in January 2001, when he was 12, but he was cleared five months later.
The men, both from Sheffield, asked that their fingerprints, DNA samples and profiles be destroyed. South Yorkshire police refused, saying the details would be retained "to aid criminal investigation".
They applied to the European court after their case was turned down by the House of Lords, which ruled that keeping the information did not breach human rights.
