‘Protect your genetic data’: Court approves sale of 23andMe assets, including genetic samples

Related video: Utah experts weigh in on sensitivity of DNA data after 23andMe files for bankruptcy

SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) — A bankruptcy court has approved the sale of all of 23andMe‘s assets, including the genetic data and samples of its customer base, to TTAM Research Institute, a nonprofit created by 23andMe’s founder and CEO, Anne Wojcicki.

As the sale continues to move forward, the Office of the Utah Attorney General and the Utah Department of Commerce’s Division of Consumer Protection are issuing a consumer alert to Utahns, advising residents of the Beehive State to take the opportunity to protect their genetic data shared with the DNA testing company.

23andMe filed for bankruptcy earlier this year as part of a court-approved reorganization plan. While 23andMe assured customers that it would not change how it stores, manages, or protects their data, the sudden sale raised privacy concerns over the genetic samples shared with the company.

In June, Utah Attorney General Derek Brown joined 26 other states in a lawsuit aimed at blocking the sale of the genetic data of roughly 15 million people. Despite the lawsuit, Utah officials said the state had no plans to appeal the bankruptcy court’s decision due to “significant steps taken to ensure the safety and security of consumers’ data.”

Some of the key conditions of the sale, according to the Utah Division of Consumer Protection, include:

• Customer data will remain in place and under the same privacy policies, cybersecurity protections, and management.
• Customers will continue to be allowed to permanently delete their data at any time, with new mechanisms in place to ensure that deletion requests are honored and verifiable.
• TTAM’s bid for the company will also help pay claims to the 7 million people affected by 23andMe’s 2023 cybersecurity breach.
• TTAM will be able to partner more freely with public institutions and researchers to ensure ongoing progress in critical health and medical research.
• Customers who trusted 23andMe’s vision will see no meaningful change in ownership or the use of their data as TTAM is led by the same founder and team.

Utahns who still have concerns regarding their sensitive genetic data can follow 23andMe’s instructions on how to rescind access to their genetic information and request the destruction of the test sample.