7 ms·

I'm a genetic engineer at a large pharma company. Genetic engineering of human model systems is my specialty. If I were a malicious actor, I could not do anythi

I'm a genetic engineer at a large pharma company. Genetic engineering of human model systems is my specialty. If I were a malicious actor, I could not do anything useful with the genome of any one person. Most peoples genomes are boring and at best sway the predisposition for disease by a modest degree. Exposing infidelity is honestly the best I can come up with.

shreyshnaccount 2y ago
i always thought that its valuable when you have enough data from an insurance pov? is that a myth?
- Spacecosmonaut 2y ago
  For the vast majority of people lifestyle is much more deterministic than genetics. There are a few exceptions causing relatively deterministic adult onset diseases: Huntington, APOA4 homozygosity, FAP, BRACA mutants. These are rare however.
  - 1dom 2y ago
    > For the vast majority of people lifestyle is much more deterministic than genetics. How much of lifestyle do you think is determined by genetics, if any, and how much of that link do we currently understand? I feel the concern around genetic data privacy has normally been the risk of unknown future stuff, rather than any current known vectors. I'm not saying it's a legitimate fear, but I don't know if it's one that is placated with "we can't currently do anything bad".
    - Spacecosmonaut 2y ago
      The impact of lifestyle is undeniable and large. Good genes will not protect your body from alcoholism. And if I were a betting man, I would bet against determinism emerging from a better understanding of combinatorial genetics. I do think over time we will get a clearer picture of risk predisposition based on your entire genetic profile. However, I believe that genetic predisposion will remain a relatively small contributor for most disease states.
      - 1dom 2y ago
        That's fair, thanks for the response, appreciated. I agree that genetic predisposition will remain a small contributor for most disease states. However, I (an idiot who has no authority or experience with anything relating to genetics) feel we're going to learn a lot about how our genetics indirectly influence our behaviour and decision making though. I think it'll be a boring dystopia: the biggest problem will be that the more complex, distant relationships between genetics and life outcomes are discovered, the more opportunities the bodies responsible for health will have to say "well we have to protect ourselves from the uncertainty, and that's going to cost you/be profitable for us".
  - heavymetalpoizn 2y ago
    [dead]
- lotsofpulp 2y ago
  In the US, health insurers are restricted to using the following for pricing insurance, and genetics is not one: https://www.healthcare.gov/how-plans-set-your-premiums/ https://www.healthcare.gov/how-plans-set-your-premiums/ All the other types of insurance (life/disability/etc) are free to ask you to provide DNA if they think it would be useful for underwriting. The fact that they do not means the DNA is not providing enough signal to be worth considering in the underwriting process.
  - genewitch 2y ago
    Or they already have it, the same way any insurance company can look up how much coverage my policy has.
- Fomite 2y ago
  If you're worried about this, you also need to be worried about them knowing what zip code you were born in.
- vintermann 2y ago
  That's what 23andMe thought too.
amelius 2y ago
Plus they only have a selective number of SNPs, not the full genome. But if you were able to somehow combine the information with the medical history of people, then you could use the data for research, and come up with some DL model maybe.
kimos 2y ago
Thank you for saying this. I’ve done some of these saliva samples and I’ve seen the freak outs about what happens if “they” get my genome. But I cannot for the life of me figure out what they would do with it maliciously? It’s not like it can be used to sign up for a credit card or whatever.
- DrAwdeOccarim 2y ago
  My favorite thriller story idea comes from knowing a character’s SNPs that are also covered by the standard forensic DNA panel. Then the antagonist in the story buys a bunch of oligos that flank the panel targets and spreads them around the crime scene to “frame” the character for murder! So once the ‘’’bad guys’’’ purchase the 23andme database, the story is complete! They can then frame our protagonist…
  - vintermann 2y ago
    It makes entertaining fiction, but in the real world, the ways that can be used to lock you up and discredit you in the public's eye are much more banal. And I doubt they'll get more sophisticated the way things look in the US right now.
    - navigate8310 2y ago
      With all those sweeping upgrades to artificial generational technologies, a time will come where no one will trust audio-visual clues and evidence collection will be solely focused on DNA fingerprints.
  - Metacelsus 2y ago
    Yeah, this is definitely possible (and I'd bet the CIA et al already have this capability)
  - snovv_crash 2y ago
    ...or they just use your Dropbox deamon to dump a bunch of CP on your harddrive and then send in the FBI.
antegamisou 2y ago
You are not speaking from a position of a grifter though. I don't think it's a stretch that some YC funded startup could emerge and claim that they can map and predict everyone's entire actions/personalities/characteristics through their genome, heavily misinterpreting PGS/GWAS. I don't think they would care much for scientific validity in this case. It won't matter to them if the methods used are reliable. All they'll get is appraisal from mainstream media for their revolutionary approach, further ingraining social darwinism.
- johnnyanmac 2y ago
  >It won't matter to them if the methods used are reliable. the method of being a fortune-teller? I don't see how that would ever be reliable unless we figure out voodoo kinds of tricks attacking the nervous system.
  - antegamisou 2y ago
    Phrenology thrived and was heavily celebrated only one century ago as well. In the case of PRS assessment where it's already an established discipline, and not at all as unreliable as fortune-telling, it wouldn't be so hard to weaponize it.
    - johnnyanmac 2y ago
      Astrology isn't much farther off, and some still like to believe it to this day. Yes, even some very smart people can fall into absolutely baseless conjecture without peers to course correct. But there's a difference between forming a cult and trying to convince the minds en masse of something.
      - antegamisou 2y ago
        Your info is off if you believe PRS assessments are anywhere close to pseudoscience. And ok, let's agree for the sake of it that it is like astrology. Astrology is unnervingly popular, there are columns of big newspapers HN reveres dedicated to zodiac signs. A cult consisted of people buying into something very close to eugenics masked as science doesn't sound it would have trouble gaining mainstream appeal in today's American society. In fact, there's a great example of such discipline having already gained significant traction, even on this website, and it is none other than the field of evolutionary psychology. This field has provided close to zero replicable hypotheses yet it has been successfully weaponized into justifying prejudice and antisocial behavior, especially in the context of racial differences and dating. Something like advertising reliable prediction of behaviors based on DNA would be cherry on top.
CharlieDigital 2y ago
The problem is you are not a malicious actor so you aren't coming up with good scams or truly malicious ideas. How about scam emails that open by asking people about their family history of some disease with a genetic marker and promising some miracle treatment? I can think of even worse outcomes depending on how policy on immigration and naturalization shifts
- johnnyanmac 2y ago
  scam emails are pennies on a dollar, though. it's so easy to just go through any email list ever and blast out thousands at once. It's not really a business that cares about targeted approaches. >depending on how policy on immigration and naturalization shifts Birthright citizenship invalidates such profling, but even then: I don't think the government needs DNA to figure out identities of people in the database.
  - CharlieDigital 2y ago
    > It's not really a business that cares about targeted approaches. It's called open rate and open rates are heavily driven by titles. Spam filters also use reputation to rank senders and open rates are one indicator of sender "quality". They definitely use targeted approaches if they can get their hands on datasets. > Birthright citizenship invalidates such profling Only if you think that matters and the SCOTUS will uphold it. And of course, US isn't the only government; there are lots of other governments around the world.
    - johnnyanmac 2y ago
      >They definitely use targeted approaches if they can get their hands on datasets. Even on a firesale, I doubt it would be cheap enough for the margins they work on. These aren't exactly large scale, sophsticated operations being worked with here. >Only if you think that matters and the SCOTUS will uphold it. Maybe I'm overly optimistic, but I think they will. If only because it's an absolute nightmare logistically trying to do it any other way. No country is going to accept a deportation flight of peopel who were not born on their land. Or perhaps we have an underpopulation crisis decades later which does incentivize that. But that would solve the deportation issue in and of itself, right?
jvanderbot 2y ago
Faking DNA test results would be sci-fi nightmare come true. You could frame someone before they were arrested which would be ... Frightening. But even worse is invalidation of all DNA evidence because it is now easy to fake. But that still seems like a minute possibility.
- trollbridge 2y ago
  23andme doesn’t check your identity at all, so you could just put in someone else’s name and submit your own saliva, and then.. go on a crime spree?
  - crtasm 2y ago
    Whose credit card details are being used in this scenario?
    - trollbridge 2y ago
      A gift card from the gas station? Long ago we bought gifts for parents/grandparents and all they had to do was redeem a code.
Akasazh 2y ago
Isn't there possibility of very in depth racial profiling? I mean ancestry.com data van be used similarly, but genetical info is inobfuscable.
- trollbridge 2y ago
  It depends. Credible people claim that 23andme’s racial / ethnic compositions are highly inaccurate.
  - kube-system 2y ago
    Even more reason to be concerned
pfdietz 2y ago
The people with the most to lose from widespread access to genetic data are those involved in outright crimes, like rape and child sexual abuse. Did you in a younger day get some underage girl pregnant? You're at risk. Or paternity lawsuits without the age restriction. I wonder if some of those freaking out about the issue have a reason to be concerned. On the other hand, once the information is out there, any aggrieved party will have plausible access to it, so it could be argued any statute of limitations would kick in.
htek 2y ago
Once 23andMe gets sold, all of that data belongs to whoever owns it and they can sell it to whoever they want. Perhaps to the government where they can do a warrantless search to find a relative of someone who may have been at a crime scene. Or to other governments. Or to insurance companies who want to play deny, defend and depose. I get that a lot of genetic information isn't predictive, but not all of it is so questionable.
- InsomniacL 2y ago
  > Once 23andMe gets sold, all of that data belongs to whoever owns it and they can sell it to whoever they want. Why would a company being sold mean that the data can be used for a purpose it previously couldn't?
  - kube-system 2y ago
    The acquirer could have different policies or legal jurisdictions
  - HWR_14 2y ago
    The data is an asset. The limitations are contractual. The contract is voided by the bankruptcy.
    - anticensor 2y ago
      Doesn't DNA data have additional statutory limitations on top of that?
      - HWR_14 2y ago
        It has statutory limitations, subject to change, in how it can be used to discriminate against you. But those are tightly defined. It couldn't be used to deny you employment or health insurance, but could be used to deny you housing or life insurance.
delichon 2y ago
> Exposing infidelity is honestly the best I can come up with. I'm concerned with being put on a list of ashkenazi, and sold to people who work for my death on that basis. https://www.wired.com/story/23andme-credential-stuffing-data-stolen/ https://www.wired.com/story/23andme-credential-stuffing-data...
- bbqfog 2y ago
  I’m much more concerned about Palestinians being targeted since they’ve already been the victims of AI weapons attacking civilians. Imagine if people with Palestinian/semitic DNA were leaked?
  - delichon 2y ago
    Palestinians do not have distinctive DNA that sets them apart from other populations in the Middle East. I'm not aware of movements that target levantine ancestry in general.
    - pavel_lishin 2y ago
      I think that the sort of people who would snatch up a DNA database to put people on a list would be willing to accept some collateral damage.
    - bbqfog 2y ago
      Zionism absolutely targets those with Levantine ancestry. They’ve killed far more people than whoever the op was talking about. Ashkenazis are under no threat.
- johntitorjr 2y ago
  [dead]
amelius 2y ago
Perhaps you can explain a bit more because on the one hand you say that genetic data is worthless, but on the other hand, it provides you with an income ...
mystraline 2y ago
1. "We found you are the product of infidelity. Pay to find out who." (Paternity tests are banned in France) 2. There is incest in your family. Pay to find out. 3. We have found 4 significant markers of X diseases. Pay to find out. (Against FDA in claims of illness) 4. A lost family member was found in $location. Do you want to identify them and send money? (Likely faked, scam) 5. Surrogate or adopted: we know your birth parents. Pay to find out. There's just a few unethical and/or illegal business opportunities for malicious actors. And that was just 5 off the top of my head. If you wanted to be really evil, you combine it with other hacked/leaked/ransomed data sources and turn the screws.
hyperbovine 2y ago
> at best sway the predisposition for disease by a modest degree If insurance companies use this information to inform coverage decisions, then it's a moot point right? Just because you and I (who am also in this field) understand the limitations of the models and the data, does not mean that powerful entities will not use it to do stupid things.
belorn 2y ago
The most malicious behavior I can directly think of is someone searching the data for a targeted purpose and not caring about false positives, like targeted advertisement for health treatments with non-zero risk of side effects. DNA has always had this air of being infallible proof.
nitwit005 2y ago
You don't even need real test results. You can just email customer's family members with fake claims and try to extort money, using names and test dates as evidence.
marsten 2y ago
My shocking 23andMe story: I reached out to a guy on 23andMe that was a DNA relative (2nd cousin) and said hi. Curious how we were related, I gave him some family names going several generations back, and asked if any of them rang a bell in his family history. He responded quickly and said no, they did not. Then a few weeks later I get another response. He said that one of the names had faintly rung a bell, and when he dug into it, it turned out that was the name of his mother's boss for much of her career as a secretary. His heart sank when he realized it. He and his siblings did genetic tests and confirmed that he, the youngest, was only a half-sibling. Both of the parents were deceased so there's no way to know what really happened. After dropping that bomb in the poor guy's lap I stopped using the DNA Relatives feature.
- frankish 2y ago
  Personally, I'd prefer to find out the truth in these cases.

shreyshnaccount 2y ago

i always thought that its valuable when you have enough data from an insurance pov? is that a myth?

Spacecosmonaut 2y ago
For the vast majority of people lifestyle is much more deterministic than genetics. There are a few exceptions causing relatively deterministic adult onset diseases: Huntington, APOA4 homozygosity, FAP, BRACA mutants. These are rare however.
- 1dom 2y ago
  > For the vast majority of people lifestyle is much more deterministic than genetics. How much of lifestyle do you think is determined by genetics, if any, and how much of that link do we currently understand? I feel the concern around genetic data privacy has normally been the risk of unknown future stuff, rather than any current known vectors. I'm not saying it's a legitimate fear, but I don't know if it's one that is placated with "we can't currently do anything bad".
  - Spacecosmonaut 2y ago
    The impact of lifestyle is undeniable and large. Good genes will not protect your body from alcoholism. And if I were a betting man, I would bet against determinism emerging from a better understanding of combinatorial genetics. I do think over time we will get a clearer picture of risk predisposition based on your entire genetic profile. However, I believe that genetic predisposion will remain a relatively small contributor for most disease states.
    - 1dom 2y ago
      That's fair, thanks for the response, appreciated. I agree that genetic predisposition will remain a small contributor for most disease states. However, I (an idiot who has no authority or experience with anything relating to genetics) feel we're going to learn a lot about how our genetics indirectly influence our behaviour and decision making though. I think it'll be a boring dystopia: the biggest problem will be that the more complex, distant relationships between genetics and life outcomes are discovered, the more opportunities the bodies responsible for health will have to say "well we have to protect ourselves from the uncertainty, and that's going to cost you/be profitable for us".
- heavymetalpoizn 2y ago
  [dead]
lotsofpulp 2y ago
In the US, health insurers are restricted to using the following for pricing insurance, and genetics is not one: https://www.healthcare.gov/how-plans-set-your-premiums/ https://www.healthcare.gov/how-plans-set-your-premiums/ All the other types of insurance (life/disability/etc) are free to ask you to provide DNA if they think it would be useful for underwriting. The fact that they do not means the DNA is not providing enough signal to be worth considering in the underwriting process.
- genewitch 2y ago
  Or they already have it, the same way any insurance company can look up how much coverage my policy has.
Fomite 2y ago
If you're worried about this, you also need to be worried about them knowing what zip code you were born in.
vintermann 2y ago
That's what 23andMe thought too.

amelius 2y ago

Plus they only have a selective number of SNPs, not the full genome. But if you were able to somehow combine the information with the medical history of people, then you could use the data for research, and come up with some DL model maybe.

kimos 2y ago

Thank you for saying this. I’ve done some of these saliva samples and I’ve seen the freak outs about what happens if “they” get my genome. But I cannot for the life of me figure out what they would do with it maliciously? It’s not like it can be used to sign up for a credit card or whatever.

DrAwdeOccarim 2y ago
My favorite thriller story idea comes from knowing a character’s SNPs that are also covered by the standard forensic DNA panel. Then the antagonist in the story buys a bunch of oligos that flank the panel targets and spreads them around the crime scene to “frame” the character for murder! So once the ‘’’bad guys’’’ purchase the 23andme database, the story is complete! They can then frame our protagonist…
- vintermann 2y ago
  It makes entertaining fiction, but in the real world, the ways that can be used to lock you up and discredit you in the public's eye are much more banal. And I doubt they'll get more sophisticated the way things look in the US right now.
  - navigate8310 2y ago
    With all those sweeping upgrades to artificial generational technologies, a time will come where no one will trust audio-visual clues and evidence collection will be solely focused on DNA fingerprints.
- Metacelsus 2y ago
  Yeah, this is definitely possible (and I'd bet the CIA et al already have this capability)
- snovv_crash 2y ago
  ...or they just use your Dropbox deamon to dump a bunch of CP on your harddrive and then send in the FBI.

antegamisou 2y ago

You are not speaking from a position of a grifter though. I don't think it's a stretch that some YC funded startup could emerge and claim that they can map and predict everyone's entire actions/personalities/characteristics through their genome, heavily misinterpreting PGS/GWAS. I don't think they would care much for scientific validity in this case. It won't matter to them if the methods used are reliable. All they'll get is appraisal from mainstream media for their revolutionary approach, further ingraining social darwinism.

johnnyanmac 2y ago
>It won't matter to them if the methods used are reliable. the method of being a fortune-teller? I don't see how that would ever be reliable unless we figure out voodoo kinds of tricks attacking the nervous system.
- antegamisou 2y ago
  Phrenology thrived and was heavily celebrated only one century ago as well. In the case of PRS assessment where it's already an established discipline, and not at all as unreliable as fortune-telling, it wouldn't be so hard to weaponize it.
  - johnnyanmac 2y ago
    Astrology isn't much farther off, and some still like to believe it to this day. Yes, even some very smart people can fall into absolutely baseless conjecture without peers to course correct. But there's a difference between forming a cult and trying to convince the minds en masse of something.
    - antegamisou 2y ago
      Your info is off if you believe PRS assessments are anywhere close to pseudoscience. And ok, let's agree for the sake of it that it is like astrology. Astrology is unnervingly popular, there are columns of big newspapers HN reveres dedicated to zodiac signs. A cult consisted of people buying into something very close to eugenics masked as science doesn't sound it would have trouble gaining mainstream appeal in today's American society. In fact, there's a great example of such discipline having already gained significant traction, even on this website, and it is none other than the field of evolutionary psychology. This field has provided close to zero replicable hypotheses yet it has been successfully weaponized into justifying prejudice and antisocial behavior, especially in the context of racial differences and dating. Something like advertising reliable prediction of behaviors based on DNA would be cherry on top.

CharlieDigital 2y ago

The problem is you are not a malicious actor so you aren't coming up with good scams or truly malicious ideas. How about scam emails that open by asking people about their family history of some disease with a genetic marker and promising some miracle treatment? I can think of even worse outcomes depending on how policy on immigration and naturalization shifts

johnnyanmac 2y ago
scam emails are pennies on a dollar, though. it's so easy to just go through any email list ever and blast out thousands at once. It's not really a business that cares about targeted approaches. >depending on how policy on immigration and naturalization shifts Birthright citizenship invalidates such profling, but even then: I don't think the government needs DNA to figure out identities of people in the database.
- CharlieDigital 2y ago
  > It's not really a business that cares about targeted approaches. It's called open rate and open rates are heavily driven by titles. Spam filters also use reputation to rank senders and open rates are one indicator of sender "quality". They definitely use targeted approaches if they can get their hands on datasets. > Birthright citizenship invalidates such profling Only if you think that matters and the SCOTUS will uphold it. And of course, US isn't the only government; there are lots of other governments around the world.
  - johnnyanmac 2y ago
    >They definitely use targeted approaches if they can get their hands on datasets. Even on a firesale, I doubt it would be cheap enough for the margins they work on. These aren't exactly large scale, sophsticated operations being worked with here. >Only if you think that matters and the SCOTUS will uphold it. Maybe I'm overly optimistic, but I think they will. If only because it's an absolute nightmare logistically trying to do it any other way. No country is going to accept a deportation flight of peopel who were not born on their land. Or perhaps we have an underpopulation crisis decades later which does incentivize that. But that would solve the deportation issue in and of itself, right?

jvanderbot 2y ago

Faking DNA test results would be sci-fi nightmare come true. You could frame someone before they were arrested which would be ... Frightening. But even worse is invalidation of all DNA evidence because it is now easy to fake. But that still seems like a minute possibility.

trollbridge 2y ago
23andme doesn’t check your identity at all, so you could just put in someone else’s name and submit your own saliva, and then.. go on a crime spree?
- crtasm 2y ago
  Whose credit card details are being used in this scenario?
  - trollbridge 2y ago
    A gift card from the gas station? Long ago we bought gifts for parents/grandparents and all they had to do was redeem a code.

Akasazh 2y ago

Isn't there possibility of very in depth racial profiling? I mean ancestry.com data van be used similarly, but genetical info is inobfuscable.

trollbridge 2y ago
It depends. Credible people claim that 23andme’s racial / ethnic compositions are highly inaccurate.
- kube-system 2y ago
  Even more reason to be concerned

pfdietz 2y ago

The people with the most to lose from widespread access to genetic data are those involved in outright crimes, like rape and child sexual abuse. Did you in a younger day get some underage girl pregnant? You're at risk. Or paternity lawsuits without the age restriction. I wonder if some of those freaking out about the issue have a reason to be concerned. On the other hand, once the information is out there, any aggrieved party will have plausible access to it, so it could be argued any statute of limitations would kick in.

htek 2y ago

Once 23andMe gets sold, all of that data belongs to whoever owns it and they can sell it to whoever they want. Perhaps to the government where they can do a warrantless search to find a relative of someone who may have been at a crime scene. Or to other governments. Or to insurance companies who want to play deny, defend and depose. I get that a lot of genetic information isn't predictive, but not all of it is so questionable.

InsomniacL 2y ago
> Once 23andMe gets sold, all of that data belongs to whoever owns it and they can sell it to whoever they want. Why would a company being sold mean that the data can be used for a purpose it previously couldn't?
- kube-system 2y ago
  The acquirer could have different policies or legal jurisdictions
- HWR_14 2y ago
  The data is an asset. The limitations are contractual. The contract is voided by the bankruptcy.
  - anticensor 2y ago
    Doesn't DNA data have additional statutory limitations on top of that?
    - HWR_14 2y ago
      It has statutory limitations, subject to change, in how it can be used to discriminate against you. But those are tightly defined. It couldn't be used to deny you employment or health insurance, but could be used to deny you housing or life insurance.

delichon 2y ago

> Exposing infidelity is honestly the best I can come up with. I'm concerned with being put on a list of ashkenazi, and sold to people who work for my death on that basis. https://www.wired.com/story/23andme-credential-stuffing-data-stolen/ https://www.wired.com/story/23andme-credential-stuffing-data...

bbqfog 2y ago
I’m much more concerned about Palestinians being targeted since they’ve already been the victims of AI weapons attacking civilians. Imagine if people with Palestinian/semitic DNA were leaked?
- delichon 2y ago
  Palestinians do not have distinctive DNA that sets them apart from other populations in the Middle East. I'm not aware of movements that target levantine ancestry in general.
  - pavel_lishin 2y ago
    I think that the sort of people who would snatch up a DNA database to put people on a list would be willing to accept some collateral damage.
  - bbqfog 2y ago
    Zionism absolutely targets those with Levantine ancestry. They’ve killed far more people than whoever the op was talking about. Ashkenazis are under no threat.
johntitorjr 2y ago
[dead]

amelius 2y ago

Perhaps you can explain a bit more because on the one hand you say that genetic data is worthless, but on the other hand, it provides you with an income ...

mystraline 2y ago

1. "We found you are the product of infidelity. Pay to find out who." (Paternity tests are banned in France) 2. There is incest in your family. Pay to find out. 3. We have found 4 significant markers of X diseases. Pay to find out. (Against FDA in claims of illness) 4. A lost family member was found in $location. Do you want to identify them and send money? (Likely faked, scam) 5. Surrogate or adopted: we know your birth parents. Pay to find out. There's just a few unethical and/or illegal business opportunities for malicious actors. And that was just 5 off the top of my head. If you wanted to be really evil, you combine it with other hacked/leaked/ransomed data sources and turn the screws.

hyperbovine 2y ago

> at best sway the predisposition for disease by a modest degree If insurance companies use this information to inform coverage decisions, then it's a moot point right? Just because you and I (who am also in this field) understand the limitations of the models and the data, does not mean that powerful entities will not use it to do stupid things.

belorn 2y ago

The most malicious behavior I can directly think of is someone searching the data for a targeted purpose and not caring about false positives, like targeted advertisement for health treatments with non-zero risk of side effects. DNA has always had this air of being infallible proof.

nitwit005 2y ago

You don't even need real test results. You can just email customer's family members with fake claims and try to extort money, using names and test dates as evidence.

marsten 2y ago

My shocking 23andMe story: I reached out to a guy on 23andMe that was a DNA relative (2nd cousin) and said hi. Curious how we were related, I gave him some family names going several generations back, and asked if any of them rang a bell in his family history. He responded quickly and said no, they did not. Then a few weeks later I get another response. He said that one of the names had faintly rung a bell, and when he dug into it, it turned out that was the name of his mother's boss for much of her career as a secretary. His heart sank when he realized it. He and his siblings did genetic tests and confirmed that he, the youngest, was only a half-sibling. Both of the parents were deceased so there's no way to know what really happened. After dropping that bomb in the poor guy's lap I stopped using the DNA Relatives feature.

frankish 2y ago
Personally, I'd prefer to find out the truth in these cases.