Dozens of states sue to block the sale of 23andMe data : NPR
A 23andme Saliva collection kit was presented on March 25, 2025 in Oakland, California.
Barbara ORTUTAY / AP
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Barbara ORTUTAY / AP
Portland, Oregon. – Twenty-seven states and the Columbia district deposited legal action on Monday before the bankruptcy court aimed at blocking the sale of personal genetic data by 23andme without customer consent. The trial presents itself then that a biotechnology company seeks the approval of the court to buy the company in difficulty.
Biological samples, DNA data, health -related features and medical records are too sensitive to be sold without the express consent of each person, informed consent, said Oregon’s prosecutor Dan Rayfield, in a press release on the trial. Customers should have the right to control this deeply personal information and they cannot be sold as an ordinary property, he said.
23andme customers use saliva -based DNA test kits to find out more about their ancestry and find parents lost for a long time. Founded in 2006, the company also carried out health research and the development of drugs. But he had a hard time finding a profitable business model since his public meeting in 2021. In March, he dismissed 40% of his staff and filed a request for the bankruptcy of chapter of Chapter 11 in the Missouri Oriental District, which raises concerns about the security of customer data.
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals said last month that it was aimed at buying the company for $ 256 million. Regeneron said that he would respect the 23andme privacy policies and the applicable law. He said he would process all personal data from customers in accordance with consents, privacy policies and declarations, conditions of use and the opinions currently in force and have security controls designed to protect this data.
An independent mediator of the privacy of compensated and incomplete consumers had to examine the proposed sale and how it could affect the confidentiality of consumers and report to the court on Tuesday.
