Edited by: TJVNews.com

The once-celebrated Silicon Valley biotech firm 23andMe, renowned for pioneering at-home DNA testing kits, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, setting off alarm bells among privacy advocates and legal experts over the future of the sensitive genetic information of more than 15 million customers. The move, which comes amid ongoing financial struggles and reputational damage from a recent data breach, has reignited fears about what happens to consumer DNA data when a company collapses.

As The New York Post reported on Monday, 23andMe formally sought bankruptcy protection on Sunday, a stunning fall from grace for a company that once featured prominently in Oprah Winfrey’s “Favorite Things” list and was regarded as a revolutionary force in consumer genomics. Now, with demand for its ancestry testing kits dwindling and the stain of a 2023 cyberattack still fresh, the company faces a deeply uncertain future — and so do its customers.

Despite securing $35 million in financing over the weekend to continue operations during the sale process, consumer advocates are sounding the alarm over the potential sale or transfer of the company’s vast DNA database as part of bankruptcy proceedings.

The central concern is chilling: in bankruptcy court, user data — including highly personal genetic information — could be treated as a transferable asset, no different from office furniture or trademarks. For customers who submitted their DNA in good faith, often with the expectation of secure, lifelong privacy, the implications are profound.

As The New York Post report noted, Harvard Law School professor I. Glenn Cohen, a leading expert on bioethics and privacy law, warned that 23andMe’s bankruptcy could lead to genetic data ending up “in the hands of somebody other than 23andMe” — an outcome most customers likely never anticipated.

“This might be a time to go in and delete that information in your account, even though it’s not a perfect solve,” Cohen told The New York Post.

Cohen emphasized the broader problem: that regulatory frameworks in the U.S. have failed to keep pace with the rise of direct-to-consumer genetic testing companies. “I would love to see a space where people can get the information they want without feeling as though that information might put them at risk,” he added.

In a rare move, California Attorney General Rob Bonta — whose state is home to 23andMe — issued a public call urging customers to delete their data from the company’s servers ahead of the bankruptcy filing, according to the information provided in The New York Post report. This direct appeal from a top law enforcement official reflects the gravity of the privacy concerns at stake.

Once a company enters bankruptcy, the rules change. Assets, including user databases, can be restructured, sold, or licensed to third parties, potentially without consumer consent — especially if customers previously agreed to vague or open-ended terms of service.

How to Delete Your Data from 23andMe

In response to growing concern, The New York Post provided a step-by-step guide for customers wishing to permanently erase their data from 23andMe’s servers. While not foolproof — backups or anonymized data may still persist — this process offers the best protection currently available for users concerned about how their information may be used in the future.

To delete your data:

Log in to your 23andMe account via the website.

Navigate to your “Settings” section.

Scroll down to the “23andMe Data” section.

Click “View” next to “23andMe Data.”

Before deletion, you may download a copy of your genetic data for personal use.

Scroll to the “Delete Data” section and click “Permanently Delete Data.”

You will receive a confirmation email with a verification link to finalize the deletion.

Additional steps include:

Destroying your stored saliva sample: Go to “Preferences” in your account settings and change your storage option to request sample destruction.

Withdrawing research consent: Navigate to “Research and Product Consents” to revoke permission for your data to be used in scientific studies or partnerships.

The implosion of 23andMe marks not just a business failure but a watershed moment for the consumer genetics industry. The bankruptcy calls into question how such companies handle some of the most intimate and permanent information a person can share — their DNA.

While the convenience and novelty of learning about one’s ancestry or health risks may have lured millions to send in their spit samples, few customers likely contemplated the full legal implications of storing that data indefinitely with a private company.

As The New York Post report emphasized, the real crisis here is the regulatory vacuum. In the absence of strict privacy laws governing genetic data, companies such as 23andMe have operated with wide latitude — and now, in collapse, may put customers’ sensitive information at the mercy of creditors, buyers, or courts.

The privacy of genetic data in the United States is startlingly unprotected, particularly in cases like 23andMe, where the information is collected by direct-to-consumer (DTC) services and not traditional healthcare providers. As the report in The New York Post explained, HIPAA—the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act—does not apply to companies like 23andMe. That law governs medical data held by healthcare providers and insurers, but it excludes companies operating outside the clinical care system, such as commercial DNA testing firms.

Meanwhile, GINA—the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act—offers some protection, but only in a narrow sense: it prohibits employers and health insurers from discriminating based on genetic information, but does nothing to regulate how that information is stored, shared, or sold, The New York Post report said.

Bankruptcy law provides modest additional protection by bringing data assets under court supervision, and in rare cases involving sensitive material, a privacy ombudsperson may be appointed. But these mechanisms are limited in scope and do not guarantee that a company’s massive genetic database won’t be sold to the highest bidder during a restructuring or acquisition.

Professor Cohen told The New York Post, “This might be a time to go in and delete that information in your account, even though it’s not a perfect solve.” Cohen emphasized the absence of regulatory guardrails and said the bankruptcy underscores the urgent need for legislation that treats genetic data as uniquely sensitive and worthy of special protections.

In a symbolic and practical shift, Anne Wojcicki, the company’s co-founder and longtime CEO, announced her resignation over the weekend in a post on X (formerly Twitter). As The New York Post report detailed, she will not disappear entirely—Wojcicki revealed she plans to serve as an independent bidder in the company’s restructuring process, signaling a continued interest in the brand she helped build.

“There is no doubt that the challenges faced by 23andMe through an evolving business model have been real, but my belief in the company and its future is unwavering,” she wrote.

The company—once valued at $6 billion following its high-profile public offering in 2020—is now worth just $50 million, with its share price falling from a peak of $320 in early 2021 to below $1 as of this week, The New York Post report indicated. The speed and scale of the collapse have stunned both investors and customers alike.

During her tenure, Wojcicki—a Yale-trained biologist and former healthcare analyst—helped make 23andMe a household name. She transformed the company into a darling of the consumer biotech revolution, fueled not only by its scientific ambition but also by her own high-profile relationships and family legacy.

Wojcicki was previously married to Google co-founder Sergey Brin, with whom she shares two children. The New York Post reported that their divorce in 2015 became tabloid fodder amid reports of Brin’s affair with a Google Glass marketing executive. Though the pair never publicly addressed the details, the timing was widely reported as a catalyst for their separation.

She later dated former New York Yankees slugger Alex Rodriguez in a brief but high-profile relationship from 2016 to 2017. The couple reportedly parted ways amicably, citing lifestyle differences.

Her sister, Susan Wojcicki, was a towering figure in Silicon Valley as the former CEO of YouTube and one of Google’s earliest employees.  Tragically, Susan died last year at age 56 after being diagnosed with lung cancer, as The New York Post reported.

In her farewell message, Anne Wojcicki reflected on both the triumphs and setbacks of her 18-year journey with 23andMe: “We have had many successes, but I equally take accountability for the challenges we have today.”

For the millions of people who have used 23andMe, the question is not just whether the company survives—but what happens to their genetic blueprint now that it sits in the middle of a bankruptcy process.

Removing genetic data is not as easy or foolproof as it sounds. As explained in The New York Post report, even if a user deletes their account, there’s no guarantee that the data hasn’t already been copied, shared with partners, or stored in backup systems. And unless research consent is explicitly revoked, 23andMe may legally continue using data for scientific studies under existing terms of service.

23andMe became a household name through its easy-to-use saliva-based DNA kits, which provided users with personalized ancestry breakdowns and health-related insights. It promised to empower individuals with information about their own genetic makeup in a way that had once only been available in medical settings. This democratization of genetic information earned the company both acclaim and controversy.

But as the report in The New York Post highlighted, the company’s meteoric rise has been followed by a sobering fall—driven by increasing regulatory scrutiny, market saturation, and perhaps most devastating of all, a massive 2023 data breach that compromised the personal data of nearly 7 million customers.

The breach proved to be a watershed moment. Though 23andMe claimed the attack was the result of credential stuffing—a technique where hackers use stolen credentials from other breaches—it did little to reassure customers concerned about how their most personal, immutable data—their DNA—was handled.

In response to the incident, 23andMe faced multiple lawsuits and settled one major case this past September for $30 million, according to the information in The New York Post report. In an attempt to control financial hemorrhaging, the company also conducted a dramatic 40% workforce reduction in November 2023, affecting hundreds of employees across its operations.

With legal liabilities piling up and investor patience wearing thin, the board of directors initiated a formal sale process under court supervision. Mark Jensen, Chair of the Special Committee of the Board, emphasized that this was a strategic decision taken after considerable evaluation. “We expect the court-supervised process will advance our efforts to address the operational and financial challenges we face, including further cost reductions and the resolution of legal and leasehold liabilities,” he said, as quoted by The New York Post.

Despite its troubles, the company is not closing its doors. It will continue to operate during the sale process, backed by a $35 million infusion of emergency financing, which is intended to keep the lights on while potential buyers are considered.

But even as Wojcicki expresses faith in the company’s future, the reality is stark: 23andMe is no longer the biotech darling it once was. Its original mission—to put health and ancestry information into the hands of everyday consumers—remains compelling. But the infrastructure around that mission is now crippled by security failures, dwindling demand, and a weakened public image.

As The New York Post has reported, the future of 23andMe now depends on finding a buyer willing to inherit not only its cutting-edge genetic database and brand legacy, but also its legal baggage, plummeting valuation, and trust deficit.

Privacy advocates continue to raise concerns over whether a future owner might attempt to monetize or misuse the company’s genetic data trove, particularly in the absence of robust federal regulations governing how such data can be handled during bankruptcy and acquisition processes. The potential sale of a consumer genetics firm such as 23andMe raises serious ethical and legal questions, not only about customer consent but about the broader commodification of human DNA.

The fall of 23andMe represents more than just the failure of a single company—it signals a moment of reckoning for the entire direct-to-consumer biotechnology industry, which exploded in popularity during the late 2010s but now faces tightening regulation, growing consumer skepticism, and ethical scrutiny over how genetic information is stored, shared, and monetized.