What information is necessary to access the National Crime Information Center (NCIC)?

To access the National Crime Information Center (NCIC), it is essential to provide identifying details about an individual, which typically include the person's name, date of birth, social security number, or Operator's License Number (OLN). This specific information is crucial because the NCIC database is designed to quickly retrieve and cross-reference criminal justice information related to individuals.

The name and date of birth are particularly important as they help in distinguishing between individuals with similar names, ensuring accuracy in searches. The social security number further enhances this identification process, as it is unique to each individual. The OLN, which pertains to driver's licenses, can also assist in verifying identity against state records.

Other options, while they may seem relevant in certain contexts, do not provide the necessary information for an accurate search in the NCIC database. For example, license plate and vehicle color, while useful for particular investigations, do not uniquely identify individuals. Similarly, an address and phone number do not reliably connect to specific criminal records like the identifiers listed in the correct answer do. Lastly, previous criminal records themselves are not needed to access the NCIC; rather, the system provides those records based on the identifying information given.