I'm Australian. Is there any reason I should be concerned about my genetic data being sold? A lot of these concerns are described in very US-centric ways, which leads me to think that folks in countries that have universal healthcare have less reason to be worried.
Universal healthcare may protect you from being denied care because of a genetic condition or predisposition. BUT, that won’t protect you from being targeted by whatever corporation buys your data. It’s the laws of where the company is incorporated that govern what it can do with your data.
Fair enough. But they can target me all they like: uBlock Origin, Privacy Badger, and a natural tendency to ignore/block unfamiliar callers and/or spam means I'm pretty well-insulated against the world of soul-draining corporate braindeath.
"If you've done nothing wrong you have nothing to hide." Is one of the most insidious ideas that authoritarians use to convince people to surrender their rights to privacy. This is a vector that leads to private prison slave labor. Everyone should be concerned about this.
I wasn't asking about everybody. My original post was asking whether or not I—an Australian with a simple lifestyle and no criminal record—should consider deleting my 23andMe data, or if there's nothing I should worry about.
“Unfortunately, its current privacy policy allows for transfers of data in the event of a merger, acquisition, or bankruptcy.” Best to download what you want to keep, cancel your account, & demand that your data be deleted *before* any action on the bankruptcy.
Comments
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-10-08/how-genetic-genealogy-is-solving-australias-coldest-cases/102870058
It's a massive invasion of privacy.
Linda Avey
Paul Cusenza
Anne Wojcicki - Ex Spouse Sergey Brin.
Just sayin'