GENEALOGY-DNA-L Archives

Archiver > GENEALOGY-DNA > 2007-09 > 1188707271


From:
Subject: Re: [DNA] DNA Security and protection
Date: Sun, 2 Sep 2007 00:27:51 EDT


>Robert Stafford <> wrote:
>I doubt if insurance companies are a big factor. They
>can simply require you to submit a DNA sample to
>obtain coverage. They also would want a chain of custody
>and are very aware of the fallout of obtaining data surreptitiously.
>
>A bigger problem might be law enforcement. One of our
>project members reported the seizure of DNA in Alabama
>by a county sheriff from a testing laboratory. This was apparently
>either a paternity or forensics laboratory, although I was never able
>to follow up on the story.

----------
I would also predict that DNA will be used by law enforcement
more than it will be used by insurance companies for obtaining
medical information. In the UK for example, surnames are
being linked to Y-DNA results and this data must be leading
to arrests already.

It is my understanding that in 2004, laws in England
and Wales were extended to allow the police to obtain DNA
profiles without consent from anyone arrested, even on
just a suspicion of a crime. Isn't the NDNAD, National DNA
Database the largest law enforcement database in the world?

Our genealogy Y-DNA surname web sites are undoubtedly
helping law enforcement in the UK (and maybe the U.S.)
catch criminals by adding to their database. So are we
making the world safer or are we contributing to abuses?
Everyone including law enforcement officials can use
Ysearch or Google a surname plus the word Y-DNA plus
results and they can find a whole cluster of genealogists
who have unique haplotypes associated with a specific
surname in many cases.

So if you have an unusual name with an unusual haplotype,
you are at increased risk of being arrested if your DNA
just happens to show up at a crime scene. Well, nothing
can be done about it now; the cat is already out of the bag
and the databases already exist. It is not necessarily a
bad thing if it makes our streets safer, in my opinion.
A man is more likely to be assaulted or killed by a criminal
than he is to be falsely arrested because of his DNA results.

GeneWatch UK has a petition to fight against retention of

DNA from innocent people:
_http://www.genewatch.org/sub-539478_ (http://www.genewatch.org/sub-539478)
This subject has not reached as much attention in the U.S.

The following is not new news but it gives some background
info on how surnames can be used by the police:
_http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/4736984.stm_
(http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/4736984.stm)

Kathy J.



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