CA - Genetic testing company "23andMe" possible bankruptcy concerns, October 2024

[airportwoman]

This doesn't surprise me. Most likely, almost all of the people who wanted to use 23andMe did, and there's no new customer base to speak of.

 

[chiaracelli]

I think it is important to understand that the company is in Chapter 11 bankruptcy. That is a reorganization, not liquidation. So the company will continue at least for now. But they many not even be allowed at this point to delete information if you request. Let see what happens. It is possible it could convert to a Chapter 7 liquidation and that would get interesting for sure.

Thank you for this information!

 

[MelmothTheLost]

This doesn't surprise me. Most likely, almost all of the people who wanted to use 23andMe did, and there's no new customer base to speak of.

I don't know how 23andMe operates as it was one of the DNA testing companies that I deliberately chose not to use.

If you look at Ancestry and My Heritage, both offer subscriptions which not only provide testing and tree-building capabilities but also access to huge databases of information useful and of interest to family historians. In other words, you may pay initially for DNA testing but afterwards pay an annual subscription for access to traditional FH information to further your researches and for the ability to contact previously unknown relations.

Family Tree DNA did offer a tree-building and DNA matching capability but has recently done away with the ability to build a tree on the site and has instead tied up with My Heritage for that capability.

Does anyone know what 23andMe offered other than autosomal DNA analysis?

 

[MelmothTheLost]

The BBC reports that users are having difficulties in getting into their accounts and deleting data. It sounds like the IT equivalent of a bank run and that it might be an idea for users to delete their data PDQ.

23andMe customers struggle to delete their data

Multiple users said they had problems after the DNA-testing firm filed for bankruptcy protection.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[Snoopster]

I am wondering-should I download my data? Is there a chance that we will lose access?

Yes, you should download your DNA sequence. It's your info.
You would then have it on hand if you wanted to upload it to another genealogy site, such as MyHeritage, FTDNA or Gedmatch. None of these services charge you to upload your DNA info to them. You would then be able to find DNA matches on these sites.

As usual, this comes with the usual caveats of understanding the benefits and the risks. I chose to take the risks and am glad that I did.

 

[chiaracelli]

Yes, you should download your DNA sequence. It's your info.
You would then have it on hand if you wanted to upload it to another genealogy site, such as MyHeritage, FTDNA or Gedmatch. None of these services charge you to upload your DNA info to them. You would then be able to find DNA matches on these sites.

As usual, this comes with the usual caveats of understanding the benefits and the risks. I chose to take the risks and am glad that I did.

Thank you for the information. I am also glad I took the risk. If I did not, I wouldn't have found a sister who is the most wonderful person I have ever met.

 

[MelmothTheLost]

Yes, you should download your DNA sequence. It's your info.
You would then have it on hand if you wanted to upload it to another genealogy site, such as MyHeritage, FTDNA or Gedmatch. None of these services charge you to upload your DNA info to them. You would then be able to find DNA matches on these sites.

For those with extensive ancestry in the UK, it's worth considering LivingDNA as well as I believe they too do not charge people to upload their data. Having a very extensive, traditionally-researched tree and resulting database of my ancestry, I found LivingDNA to be the most accurate in identifying and mapping which parts of the UK and Ireland my ancestors had come from. In fact, it was uncanny.

 

[MelmothTheLost]

We have an update on 23andMe - it and all its customer data has been bought by Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, an East Coast US company developing new drug treatments for various conditions. Obviously this keeps it out of the hands of the Chinese, but it's unclear what options users have to have their data deleted now.

23andMe and its customers' genetic data bought by a pharmaceutical org

The bankrupt 23andMe, along with all of its genetic data, has been bought by US drugmaker Regeneron Pharmaceuticals.

www.malwarebytes.com

 

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[james01]

23andMe possible bankruptcy sparks concerns over customer DNA security

The genetic testing company 23andMe, known for providing DNA analysis to millions of customers, is facing bankruptcy, raising concerns about the security of sensitive genetic data.

www.fox5atlanta.com

ARCHIVE (10/29/24)

It looks like discussions about this may have started in September but I didn't hear anything about it until today. I thought we should have a thread for this since 23andMe (I think) has played a significant role in solving unsolved crimes and identifying Does.

You're right—23andMe and similar services have really made an impact on cold cases and unidentified individuals. It's fascinating how something as personal as a DNA test can lead to major breakthroughs in long-unsolved mysteries. I hadn’t heard about this particular development until now either, so I really appreciate you starting a thread. Looking forward to learning more and seeing how this all unfolds!

 

[MelmothTheLost]

You're right—23andMe and similar services have really made an impact on cold cases and unidentified individuals. It's fascinating how something as personal as a DNA test can lead to major breakthroughs in long-unsolved mysteries. I hadn’t heard about this particular development until now either, so I really appreciate you starting a thread. Looking forward to learning more and seeing how this all unfolds!

I'm not sure that that is correct. The only companies which currently allow LE to access their databases are GEDmatch and Family Tree DNA, and only then if the member explicitly opts in to LE accessing their matches.

 

[Amonet]

For those with extensive ancestry in the UK, it's worth considering LivingDNA as well as I believe they too do not charge people to upload their data. Having a very extensive, traditionally-researched tree and resulting database of my ancestry, I found LivingDNA to be the most accurate in identifying and mapping which parts of the UK and Ireland my ancestors had come from. In fact, it was uncanny.

Is there a thread on here for the subject of DNA testing and pros and cons of each site? I would love to learn more about this (I have done DNA with Ancestry and uploaded to Gedmatch (and ticked to share with LE on there) and MyHeritage, but I want to do more.