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Millions of users are trying to get their genetic data removed from the company's system after an American company that helped discover a person's ancestral history and genetic health through DNA testing went bust. A famous biotech company called 'Twenty Three and Me', which has collected the DNA information of about 15 million people, has filed for bankruptcy protection in the federal court this week.
After a prolonged financial crisis, the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy under the United States Code in federal court on March 24. Chapter 11 bankruptcy provisions provide an opportunity for any company, business or individual to restructure their debt. Its purpose is to provide an opportunity to financially re-establish the company without shutting it down completely .
After the bankruptcy filing, the company's chief executive officer Anne Wojciech resigned and the company has already cut 40 percent of its workforce . At one time, there was an offer to buy this company with a market valuation of 3.5 billion dollars for 1.1 million dollars. However, the board of directors rejected such attractive purchase proposals at that time. Currently, the future of the company is uncertain.
Millions of customers who have used Twenty Three & Me's services in the past are concerned about the security of their genetic data. In 2023, after the company's website was hacked and data was leaked, the personal details of 6.9 million customers were exposed. The company had to pay a fine of 30 million dollars in the case related to the incident.
If the bankruptcy process proceeds, the company will be put up for sale . This means that the company's dataset will be purchased by the highest bidder . In this way, it is mentioned in the news of CNBC that users are asking the company to delete their information because they are afraid that their genetic information is going to be put up for sale.
"According to Similar Web, which analyzes online traffic, 1.5 million users visited the company's website on the day the company announced bankruptcy," CNBC wrote, "that's a 526 percent increase from the previous day." About 400,000 visits were seen on the information on deleting data on the help page.'
California Attorney General Rob Bonta has also issued a statement to Twenty Three & Me customers to be cautious. He also reminded consumers that they have the right to have their genetic data deleted under the Genetic Information Privacy Act and the California Consumer Privacy Act. Bonta has posted on the California Attorney General's website how users can delete their data by going to the company's website.
Founded in 2006, Twenty Three Me has been providing consumers with a way to trace their ancestors or lineage based on genetic information. In this, the consumer had to go to the company's website, create an account and purchase a 'DNA testing kit'. After the kit was available, saliva or sputum had to be collected in the tube and sent to the company's lab . DNA was detected from saliva in the lab.
After knowing the DNA, the company through the 'genotyping' method It used to provide a report in 4 to 6 weeks after analyzing the 'genetic variants' in the overall genome of the customer. The website states that the company uses a microarray chip for the genotyping process. The chip is said to be able to analyze multiple genetic variants at the same time.
In this way, the company has placed the highly personal details discovered through genotyping in an easy-to-understand visualization and interactive format on the account of Twenty Three and Me . The report includes information on ancestry structure, maternal and paternal haplogroups (groups with a common ancestor), as well as various aspects of Neanderthal ancestry . Along with this, the company also claims to provide information about the genetic health risk of the person, the condition and possibility of hereditary diseases in the body .
This company was recently criticized for focusing more on health conditions than on genealogical history and encouraging customers to take services in collaboration with insurance and health organizations. As questions arose about whether genetic data could be used in the healthcare industry, the number of companies purchasing the kit decreased . In addition, the 2023 data leak incident also damaged the reputation of Twenty Three & Me. The company's income fell due to a decrease in demand for genetic test kits. In addition, it is mentioned in CNN's analytical news that the company is currently in a state of collapse due to a heavy fall in share prices.
'This is not the only or the first genetic testing company that has come to the point of having to sell assets after the financial crisis,' CNN wrote, 'Before this, a private equity firm called Blackstone acquired Ancestry.com in 2020.' It has been pointed out about the risk of misuse.
'If genetic data is sold in the advertising market, the user may receive advertisements about their own health symptoms that they do not know about themselves,' Professor Dhar further said, 'Those who collect genetic information have immense information about you, they can misuse it.'
