Massive DNA testing company 23andMe, which touts easy kits on their website, has gone bankrupt.
"Our home-based saliva collection kit is all you need to send your DNA to the lab. We have made the process as simple as possible," the 23andMe website states.
But once an individual sends in their DNA, it doesn't get sent back -- raising serious questions about where it will go as the company gets sold off and Chinese companies offer bids.
"Bankrupt 23andMe will be allowed to sell customers’ genetic data to other companies. The company claims its security measures surrounding the data will remain in place, but its privacy policy says it can change those procedures at any time. 23andMe customers do have a way to delete their genetic and ancestral data, however," Fortune reports.
The situation isn't going unnoticed on Capitol Hill and House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer has launched an investigation.
“The Committee on Oversight and Government Reform has a long history of investigating data privacy and the security risks posed by malign foreign actors. The bankruptcy filing of 23andMe, Inc.—a direct-to-consumer genetic testing company in possession of personal genetic data of millions of Americans—raises significant concerns regarding potential transfers of customers’ and family members’ sensitive personal data to various interested entities, including the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)," Comer wrote in a letter to 23andMe board member Anne Wojcicki, who has been asked to testify about the matter on May 6 in front of the Comittee. "With more than 15 million customers, 23andMe asks its users to provide ‘a saliva sample for analysis, usually to learn details about their ancestry, family traits, and potential health risks.’ The New York Times reported that ‘China and other countries are trying to dominate these technologies, and are using both legal and illegal means to acquire American know how,’ warning of the CCP’s ‘track record of misusing genetic data."
“The intricacies of the bankruptcy process for 23andMe underscore risk for consumers. Ms. Margaret Hu, professor of law and director of the Digital Democracy Lab at William & Mary Law School cautioned, ‘[w]hen you’re in bankruptcy, data privacy values are not what you’re really thinking about. You’re thinking about selling your company to the highest bidder,’” Comer continued. “National security concerns about 23andMe and similar companies are not new. In December 2019, the U.S. Department of Defense advised ‘members of the military not to use consumer DNA kits, saying the information collected by private companies could pose a security risk.’”
China has a history of collecting and using genetic data for nefarious purposes. From Reuters:
Chinese gene company selling prenatal tests around the world developed them in collaboration with the country's military and is using them to collect genetic data from millions of women for sweeping research on the traits of populations, a Reuters review of scientific papers and company statements found.
U.S. government advisors warned in March that a vast bank of genomic data that the company, BGI Group, is amassing and analyzing with artificial intelligence could give China a path to economic and military advantage. As science pinpoints new links between genes and human traits, access to the biggest, most diverse set of human genomes is a strategic edge. The technology could propel China to dominate global pharmaceuticals, and also potentially lead to genetically enhanced soldiers, or engineered pathogens to target the U.S. population or food supply, the advisors said.