The old ink-footprint method used when babies are welcomed into this world has just gone high-tech at one Long Island hospital.

It's called CertaScan, a newborn safety system that uses live scan technology to digitize footprints in case of an emergency. The database connects the baby's footprint to the mother's fingerprint.

Erika and Adam Auerbach welcomed baby Spencer into their lives on Monday. They became some of the first patients at North Shore to use the new digital footprint.

"The images are uploaded and stored in a secure web portal that only parents can access," says Susan Robertson, chief nursing information officer.

Robertson says parents can still get the ink version and paper if they choose.

North Shore University Hospital officials say they are the only ones on Long Island offering the digital scans.