Wednesday, November 29, 2017

US Senator Calls on FTC to Investigate DNA Ancestry Companies



This article discusses how Chuck Schumer is concerned by companies such as 23andMe, AncestryDNA, and MyHeritage being able to take thousands of people’s DNA in a database, where he believes the security of that information may not be secure. These companies offer a kit in which you swab your saliva into a tube, send it to the company, and they will respond with information about your heritage and DNA. “It shouldn’t be that they can sell it and the consumer doesn’t know,” said Schumer. “There is no point to learning about your family tree if your privacy gets chopped down at the same time.” He is concerned that one’s privacy is at stake due to the possibility of third party organizations getting a hold of this information.
This is a very important topic. It is crucial for those families who participate in these kits to have their DNA remain private between them and the company who administered the test. I have personally partook in one of these ancestry tests, and find it unsettling to know that my personal DNA could be potentially sold to a third party company, or out in the open. This is a serious topic that needs to be addressed.

I think that this article is pretty well written. It talks about a serious topic that can affect the privacy of thousands of users. I think that a better explanation up front would benefit this article, as I had to read it a couple times to grasp its meaning. Overall, this was a good article.
Posted for S. McGrath

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