By Daily Mail (U.S.) | Created at 2025-03-24 11:50:06 | Updated at 2025-03-26 08:47:56
1 day ago
Genetics testing giant 23andMe has filed for bankruptcy, with its 15 million American users urged to wipe their profiles over fears their DNA information could be sold.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta urged 23andMe users to 'delete their data and destroy any samples of genetic material held by the company'.
He spoke hours before 23andMe filed for bankruptcy late Sunday. That filing saw its stock tank to just 96 cents a share while CEO Anne Wojcicki, who is also the company's co-founder, resigned.
23andMe will continue to trade, as Wojcicki tries desperately to mount a takeover bid to try and save the ailing tech firm.
But she faces an uphill battle after California's most powerful lawyer said users should have zero confidence in 23andMe.
Bonta said it is impossible to know where the ultra-personal data will now end up, after users paid $200 to have DNA samples analyzed to reveal their family's past.
23andMe was founded by entrepreneur Wojcicki and is based in Silicon Valley, meaning it falls under California's Genetic Privacy Act.
That allows consumers to access and delete data at will. 23andMe users can purge their files by logging into their account and clicking 'settings,' then 'view' then 'delete data.'
That then generates an email which customers must click on to finalize the deletion. 23andMe was a tech darling as recently as 2021, when its share price hit $320.
Users were fascinated to discover which parts of the world their ancestors came from.
23andMe CEO Anne Wojcicki, whose company has just filed for bankruptcy, amid a warning 15 million users DNA information could be shared on the dark web
23andMe was a tech darling for years and was even listed on Oprah Winfrey's annual list of her favorite thing
California AG Rob Bonta has urged 23andMe users to delete their data. The firm is based in California, where a local law makes it easy for users to wipe their information and samples
Oprah Winfrey was among fans and listed the 23andMe test kits in her annual list of her favorite things in 2017.
Anyone who shared a DNA sample was given a breakdown of their ancestry detailing the ethnic background of their predecessors.
23andMe was also used by law enforcement to solve high-profile cold cases.
Investigators were able to plug a suspect's data into the DNA database to identify possible relatives who'd shared their DNA information for innocent purposes.
That enabled them to identify and dramatically narrow down potential suspects whose backgrounds were then checked to see if there was anything that put them at the scene of a crime.
The corporation's implosion was blamed on rapid over-expansion and a 2023 data breach which put people off using the site.
Wojcicki, the site's CEO and co-founder, was married to Google co-founder Sergey Brin between 2007 and 2015.
She used her contacts to try and drum-up investment for the firm.
Wojcicki's most recent buy-out offer valued 23andMe at just $11 million, or 41 cents per share.
That is a stunning decline from the company's peak valuation of 46 billion in early 2021.
