Tag: dna testing
  • Aug 26, 2020 |
  • Glyn Moody |
  • Cybersecurity, General Privacy News, Governments,

As privacy problems continue to pile up for DNA databases, Covid-19 introduces a major new risk

Two years ago, Privacy News Online warned that the growing number of large-scale DNA databases were likely to become a serious threat to people’s privacy. Sadly, things have not improved since then. The increasing police use of DNA sites to find suspects for serious crimes, as described in that post, led one of the leaders … Continue reading “As privacy problems continue to pile up for DNA databases, Covid-19 introduces a major new risk”

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  • Oct 20, 2018 |
  • Glyn Moody |
  • General Privacy News,

Coming soon: everyone’s genetic anonymity undermined by distant relatives – and there’s nothing you can do about it

Earlier this year, Privacy News Online wrote about how long-standing linked but unsolved murder cases were resolved by checking genetic material found at some of the crime scenes against online DNA-based genealogy sites. The partial matches with others on the database indicated that they were relatives of the murderer. By drawing up a family tree … Continue reading “Coming soon: everyone’s genetic anonymity undermined by distant relatives – and there’s nothing you can do about it”

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  • May 18, 2018 |
  • Glyn Moody |
  • General Privacy News, Governments,

The growing threat to privacy from big data forensics and false positives

The cost of sequencing the DNA found in genomes has been decreasingly rapidly in recent years. Since 2008, it has been falling even faster than the well-known Moore’s Law for semiconductor prices, and today a human genome can be sequenced in its near-entirety for $1000 or less. Similarly, partial sequencing costs have dropped dramatically, allowing … Continue reading “The growing threat to privacy from big data forensics and false positives”

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  • Nov 9, 2017 |
  • Glyn Moody |
  • Cybersecurity, General Privacy News, Governments,

What the Sci-Hub saga and DNA testing services can teach us about privacy

Privacy News Online has just written about an “unprecedented” injunction granted by a US judge against the site Sci-Hub. The reach of that injunction is clearly deeply problematic for lots of reasons, and creates a very troubling precedent. But there’s an aspect of the story that merits further consideration, since it has broader implications for … Continue reading “What the Sci-Hub saga and DNA testing services can teach us about privacy”

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