THIS MODERN NEANDERTHAL WANTS TO KNOW IF 23ANDME DATA WILL ALWAYS BE SECURE
While I love the idea of genetics, genetic testing and the pretty interesting things we can learn from the last, I have some major concerns about the data. Data, of course, means all the data that ends up in storage in some virtual “somewhere” that can easily end up “anywhere,” if not “everywhere.” And as the partially Neanderthal parent of a child with special needs, where genetic testing is always, always recommended as an option to pursue, I’ve thought about this quite a lot. Because what happened today virtually for each of us happens for the rest of our lives. And now that it’s pretty clear that 23andMe is failing, what does that mean for all its accumulated customer date? Will it be secure?
Read More: Junk Entrepreneur Found a Picasso Painting in an Abandoned Basement 60 Years Ago
EVERYONE’S DNA SHOULD STAY SECURE FOREVER, AND NOT BE A COMMODITY- BUT WILL IT?
And as for my parental concerns, they don’t just apply to my child when it comes to genetic testing. For one, it’s a bad gambler’s bet to know which genetic tests actually mean anything. And these days, there are tests for anything you, or genetic testing product makers, can think of. But sticking to 23andMe, we know that there have been some major errors with their tests. And we know that supposedly knowing your ethnic (genetic) origins isn’t all that clear, despite paying for just that privilege. But aside from maybe knowing how much Neanderthal genes we may (or may not) carry, we don’t really know much more. But that’s still personal data, and it needs to be secure.
Related:
World Health Organization Finds That Aspartame IS a Carcinogen
23ANDME LOOKS TO BE FAILING AS A COMPANY, AND IT HAS A LOT OF PEOPLE’S FULL GENETIC PROFILES
So what happens when 23andMe totally fails as a company and possibly goes under? What happens to its data? How will it be secure? Because regardless of the analytical tools currently available to decipher our DNA, those tools will get better. And if you have testing results on file with 23andMe, the raw data is quite the commodity. And if it’s sold, regardless of whether it’s to supposedly good actors or bad actors, it’s going to be out there. Do you want random companies to know your Neanderthal ancestry, along with your cancer risks, mental health risks, and all health risks entire?
Because laws can change for health insurance based on this kind of data, as well as a lot of other factors. It needs to be secure, and 23andMe has an incredible amount of people’s genetic identity on file. But not my child’s for this very reason and concern.
