User DNA data is at risk.

Last week, Anne Wojcicki, CEO of the tech startup 23andMe, filed for bankruptcy and announced her resignation. Six months prior, the company's board of directors had dissolved due to disagreements over strategic direction.

23andMe, a company that once provided genetic testing services for medical purposes and genealogical analysis, collected DNA data from over 15 million customers and was expected to be one of the world's most valuable tech unicorns. However, since going public in 2021, the company has not recorded any profits.

Following scandals involving data theft and class-action lawsuits, 15 million 23andMe customers are anxiously awaiting the fate of their data. Many are seeking ways to delete their information from 23andMe to avoid future problems.

DNA data is like a ticking time bomb.

In its bankruptcy protection filing, 23andMe stated that it began experiencing significant problems related to the data hack in 2023.

In October 2023, hackers offered to sell a massive trove of 23andMe user data on the Dark Web. This data included detailed information such as birth dates and names. By December, the company confirmed that hackers had accessed the genealogical data of nearly 7 million users. It is estimated that approximately 14,000 user accounts were directly accessed by the hackers.

By January of the following year, details of the hack revealed that it took 23andMe five months to realize the company had been cyberattacked.

Kỳ lân công nghệ phá sản: Chục nghìn người Mỹ tìm cách xóa dữ liệu ADN - Ảnh 1. — Anne Wojcicki - founder of the biotechnology startup 23andMe

According to Reuters, this incident led the tech unicorn to face a $30 million lawsuit. A week later, independent directors on 23andMe's board of directors announced their resignation.

However, the DNA data of users on 23andMe remains a ticking time bomb. In an effort to save the startup, the leaders are looking to sell the company to pay off debts. This means that user data could also be sold.

This immediately sparked a major controversy within the community. The majority of users objected, arguing that their personal data collected and stored by 23andMe was not a commodity to be traded or auctioned off.

The director of cybersecurity at the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a non-profit organization focused on digital privacy, urged users to delete their data from 23andMe. Just three days after being posted, the article garnered 531,000 views.

"Data is data, and once it's made public, it's very difficult to control," James Hazel, a biomedical researcher, told Business Insider.

23andMe states that the personal data they collect includes registration information such as date of birth, genetic information such as genotype, saliva samples, and self-reported information. Additionally, contracted partners who process customer saliva samples may also have access to this customer data.

A 23andMe spokesperson stated that the company does not share data with "employers, insurance companies, law enforcement agencies, or public databases." However, users remain concerned about their information given the uncertainty surrounding 23andMe's future.

In the platform's health profile, users can opt out of "23andMe Data." However, the company notes that they have a legal obligation to retain certain information.

The company's website states: "While we will delete most of your personal information, we must retain some information to comply with legal obligations." The company's privacy statement also clarifies: "23andMe and its genetic testing partners will retain your genetic information, date of birth, and gender as required to comply with applicable legal obligations... even if you choose to delete your account."

According to experts, the collapse of 23andMe has sounded an alarm to users and regulatory agencies regarding the collection and storage of important data such as people's DNA. On the positive side, genetic data will be particularly important in healthcare, decoding much personal information. But the risk is that once this information is decoded and accessed illegally, it can never be recovered or concealed. Once data falls into the wrong hands, the lives of victims are like fish on a chopping block. They cannot foresee all the risks they will face in the future.

DNA data is like a ticking time bomb.

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