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Business|As 23andMe Struggles, Concerns Surface About Its Genetic Data
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/05/business/23andme-dna-bankrupt.html
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A plummet in the company’s valuation and a recent board resignation have raised questions about the future of genetic data collected from millions of customers.
Oct. 5, 2024, 4:20 p.m. ET
The genetic testing company 23andMe, once valued at $6 billion, is facing an uncertain future after a drop in share prices, a recent board resignation and a data breach last year that affected nearly seven million customers.
The turmoil has raised questions about what might happen to the genetic data of the company’s roughly 15 million customers.
Last month, the seven independent directors of the board sent an open letter to Anne Wojcicki, the chief executive and co-founder of 23andMe, notifying her of their resignation while citing frustration with the company’s direction.
“After months of work, we have yet to receive from you a fully financed, fully diligenced, actionable proposal that is in the best interests of the nonaffiliated shareholders,” the letter said.
Soon after, Ms. Wojcicki, who owns 49 percent of the voting stock, said in a federal filing that she was determined to take the company private.
The company has said that it is committed to customer privacy, but people who have submitted tests to discover ancestry lines or for health care research can potentially leave their information vulnerable to threat actors.
