Butmailing in a vial of spitdoesnotautomatically put you in a database that law enforcement can access.
Your privacy risk depends which key in of company youre working with.
Rather, privacy concerns are greatest for databases where a person can upload DNA data and trawl for matches.
That doesnotinclude the most popular companies, 23andme and Ancestry DNA.
Both companies also allow you to request that they delete your data and/or destroy your sample.
If youve done one of these tests, you know thats alotof spit.
This step ensures that nobody is sending in a sneaky swab of your discarded DNA.)
Among the dozens that have been in the news, most use GEDmatch, or occasionally FamilyTreeDNA.
Both are genealogy databases where users can upload their own DNA data.
When law enforcement agents were looking for the Golden State Killer,the admins at GEDmatch had no idea.
Anybody could upload a DNA file, no special permission needed.
(If youre a FamilyTreeDNA user,you’re free to opt out.)
They share tearful stories about finally connecting with their birth parents and other long-lost relatives.
For these folks, the search for relatives is the whole point.
If youre excited to potentially help catch criminals or identify cold-case bodies, well, enjoy!
We are also learning more and more about people from their DNA.
Currently some companies de-identify data by dissociating it from its owners name and birthdate.
But in many cases that information isnt too hard to reconstruct.
Your DNA also contains clues about your ethnicity and even traits like the shape of your face.
Someday we may be able to make a decent guess at the DNA owners personality.
Ultimately, the choice to learn about your DNA is a personal one.
We each have to decide how much privacy were comfortable giving up.
