California-based genetic testing supplier 23andMe has filed for Chapter 11 chapter and plans to promote its property following years of economic struggles.
23andMe has been offering direct-to-consumer DNA testing providers since November 2007 to prospects who ship a saliva pattern and obtain a report on their ancestry and genetic predispositions. Since then, 23andMe has offered over 15 million DNA testing kits.
The corporate mentioned in a Sunday press launch that it’s going to not change the way it shops, manages, or protects buyer knowledge.
In a Monday submitting with the U.S. Securities and Change Fee (SEC), it additionally “filed a movement looking for authorization to pursue a structured sale of their property pursuant to a aggressive public sale and sale course of,” after rejecting a takeover bid from the CEO and co-founder Anne Wojcicki, who has since resigned to enter the gross sales course of as an “impartial bidder.”
“As well as, we’re dedicated to persevering with to safeguard buyer knowledge and being clear in regards to the administration of consumer knowledge going ahead, and knowledge privateness can be an essential consideration in any potential transaction,” mentioned Mark Jensen, 23andMe Chair of the Board of Administrators.
With the corporate’s property now up on the market to the best bidder, privateness consultants worry that each one the amassed DNA knowledge might fall into the mistaken palms, doubtlessly exposing 23andMe prospects’ genetic data regardless of the corporate’s assurances that this would possibly not occur.
The Workplace of California’s Lawyer Common additionally reacted to the information and issued a client alert advising 23andMe prospects to ask the corporate to delete their knowledge, destroy their take a look at samples, and revoke permission for his or her knowledge for use for analysis.
This alert additionally supplies detailed steps on learn how to file these requests, together with logging into your account, going into Settings, clicking ‘View’ subsequent to “23andMe Knowledge” (right here you even have the choice to obtain your knowledge first), scrolling to “Delete Knowledge,” and clicking “Completely Delete Knowledge.” Subsequent, you should click on the hyperlink within the affirmation e mail that you’re going to obtain 23andMe.
As we speak, the UK’s Info Commissioner’s Workplace additionally mentioned that genetic data is among the many most delicate private knowledge people share and warned that corporations dealing with this knowledge should observe strict safety and governance requirements underneath GDPR.
“We’re conscious that 23andMe has filed for Chapter 11 chapter within the US to facilitate a sale course of. We’re monitoring the scenario intently and are involved with the corporate,” mentioned ICO Deputy Commissioner Stephen Bonner.
“As a matter of UK regulation, the protections and restrictions of the UK GDPR proceed to use and 23andMe stays underneath an obligation to guard the private data of its prospects.”
In September 2024, 23andMe agreed to pay $30 million to settle a lawsuit over an information breach that had uncovered the information of 6.4 million prospects in 2023. In January 2024, the corporate additionally confirmed that the attackers stole well being studies and uncooked genotype knowledge throughout 5 months of credential-stuffing assaults.
This 2023 knowledge breach led to a number of class-action lawsuits, which prompted 23andMe—in a transfer extensively criticized by prospects—to amend its Phrases of Use in November 2023 to make it more durable to sue the corporate. Nevertheless, 23andMe claimed that the adjustments aimed to simplify the arbitration course of.
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