23andMe is a genetic testing company that allows users to see their ancestry using saliva. It is an expensive test, but it is very popular among people to find out their origins.
However, due to the decreasing demand for their test kits, and also the data breach incident that occurred in 2023 that caused the personal data of 7 million customers of the business to be leaked to the dark web arena. Both of these things caused the company, which was valued at $6 billion not long ago, to file for bankruptcy, and is expected to sell off all of its assets in the near future.
To help with the process of closing the company, 23andMe CEO Anne Wojcicki has resigned, but will still remain a member of the company's board of directors. The process of selling the company's assets will be managed by the court to get the highest value from the sale.
One concern expressed by those who have used this genetic testing service is how their data will be handled. 23andMe says that it is highly likely that the data will be sold to the highest bidder.
The company's privacy policy states that even if the data is sold or exchanged with another company, they promise that it will remain secure, but this can change at any time.
Users who do not want their data sold to other companies are advised to delete their user data on 23andMe before this happens, and users will no longer be able to delete it in the future.