“She Will Pick Her Teeth With Their Bones.” That’s what my boss said about my research abilities when I was working in journalism over 30 years ago.
This is not so funny, especially thinking about the unintended consequences of using familial DNA databases to solve crimes — with or without customers’ consent or knowledge.
An authority on genetic genealogy has made some great points about these problems for genealogy-website users. I guess I should ask her if I can quote her on a Facebook group post. If she needs the credit for spurring my thoughts, she shall have it. She made her points much better than I can. But I will just paraphrase what I and many others have said and written before: People should not have these issues forced on them when all they want is to enjoy some genealogy.
The comments came after this was posted in a Facebook group.
This is partly about using the public DNA-for-genealogy databases as compared to using the Law Enforcement DNA databases. The article is beyond a paywall and I have no idea about its’ contents beyond the abstract. But the article sparked the thoughts of one of the great genealogists, who, like me, is concerned over how people and their data are being used in Law Enforcement cases. (And of course there are the health and medical issues and so on. But that is another kettle of fish.)
Journalists will be like flies on honey if they get any names in a story, whether for an investigation or prosecution. People will find themselves with the very public and unpleasant “15 minutes of fame” issues in some successful identifications. Named in cases and named in the newspapers equals lives turned upside down. I was not surprised to see the genealogist point out that this had already happened in cases. Names of people, innocent people, became public in the filings of a criminal case and there will be more.
What criminal is not going to realize at some point, “Oh, I just committed a capital crime and wasn’t it Uncle So’n’so who said Aunt Biddy has tested her DNA? Better pop over there and get her to delete it – at gunpoint.”
There are so many who poo-pooed the concerns but databases with health info and personal info have been accessed inappropriately time and again, because of cyber security failures, and this issue is growing.
The article that spurred all this thought explained the techniques — and combinations of techniques — that had been used to identify suspects through their relatives’ DNA. Maybe if law enforcement took all the crimes more seriously in the first place, and had money and time to take fingerprints and process rape kits, then maybe predators would be caught earlier. And I do have a personal experience to cite.
I feel like I have been robbed. DNA for genealogy was my work as well as a personal pleasure. And now I can no longer wholeheartedly recommend any of it without caveats.
I have all my people’s data turned off. Period. My feelings of baby, baby, baby I love my Gedmatch, and others, became like those of the wife who discovers her spouse has been unfaithful. It will never be the same.
Eurofins Scientific: Forensic services firm paid ransom after cyber-attack.
DNA service company exposes customers’ records online. By, Bloomberg news July 10 2019.
Outed – and will this result in some criminals thinking 2 plus 2 equals 4 and maybe they should…
Marionetta Strung-Out 