DNA Can Be Used to Send You to Prison, and Not Just Your Own

By: Jordan Carrier

More than 15 million people have had their DNA analyzed by companies like 23andMe and Ancestry following a boom in testing during 2017.[1]  This increased interest in gene testing has been attributed to companies’ advertising of genealogical testing.[2] An initial consumer concern, and one that has persisted as more consumers have their DNA analyzed, is the loss of control over genetic information and the associated risks.[3] For example, the Chief Privacy Officer of 23andMe stated in 2016 that U.S. regulatory compliance “requires that raw information be held for a minimum of 10 years.”[4] This means that even if customers close their 23andMe accounts, the information is still held by the company.[5] This information can be used for research purposes by drug companies, can lead to lack of insurance coverage based on genetic predispositions, and can be used by law enforcement.[6] While testing companies are adamant that genetic information is deidentified and law enforcement efforts will be resisted at all costs, it is possible for information to be reidentified and federal government agencies have already begun subpoenaing these companies.[7]

The risks associated with genetic data not only affect those who make the decision to send samples to testing companies but have potential ramifications for family members as well.[8] Perhaps most notably, the arrest of the man suspected of being the Golden State killer occurred as a result of DNA from the crime scene matching to one of Joseph James DeAngelo’s relatives on an open source DNA and Genealogy Research site.[9] Between 1976 and 1986, the Sacramento, California area was plagued by a series of rapes and murders and the killer was nicknamed “The Golden State Killer.”[10] The crimes stopped and no arrests were made in the following 32 years.[11] In April of 2018, law enforcement officers created a genome-wide profile and uploaded it to GEDmatch, a database which contains approximately one million DNA profiles.[12] The site identified a third cousin,[13] and officers created a family tree for the match and narrowed family members down by age, gender, location, and other characteristics to determine a single suspect.[14] Between April and August of 2018, 13 cases have reportedly been solved through the use of similar long range familial searches.[15]

In response to the use of long range familial searches in criminal cases, researches sought out to determine what percent of individuals of European descent could be identified by a third cousin or closer match.[16] Using the same genealogy research site used to find a suspect in the Golden State Killer case, which consists of 1.28 million individuals who had their DNA tested with consumer genomics and demographic identifiers, the study concluded that nearly 60% of long-range familial searches can identify a third cousin or a closer relative, the same level of connection that lead to Joseph DeAngelo’s arrest.[17] To test these results, the DNA of an individual, whose identity was known but was treated as unknown for the purpose of the test, was used.[18] Within one hour of uploading the sample to GEDmatch, an ancestral couple from 4-6 generations ago had been identified.[19] By the end of the day, the target person had been identified and confirmed.[20]

As the number of consumers who have sent their DNA to sequencing companies continues to increase, so will the percent of individuals who can be matched to family members through the databases. It is estimated that if a random sample of 2% of a given population’s DNA is analyzed and put into a database, then 90% of searches would produce a family member.[21] While current databases are not representative samples, with 75% of people in the GEDmatch database being of European descent,[22] the ramifications are still very real.

Ultimately, it is up to consumers to determine if participating in a genetic testing services is something that they are comfortable with,[23] and the use of genetic information in the criminal investigation context may affect consumers’ comfort levels moving forward.

[1] See Y. Erlich et al., Identity Inference of Genomic Data Using Long-Range Familial Searches, Science Mag. (Oct. 11, 2018), http://science.sciencemag.org/content/sci/early/2018/10/10/science.aau4832.full.pdf.

[2]See Antonio Regalado, 2017 Was the Year Consumer DNA Testing Blew Up, MIT Technology Review, (Feb. 12, 2018), https://www.technologyreview.com/s/610233/2017-was-the-year-consumer-dna-testing-blew-up/.

[3]See Patrick Cain, Privacy Risks Lurk in DNA Tests, Experts Warn, Global News (Aug. 15, 2018 8:00 AM EDT), https://globalnews.ca/news/2879276/privacy-risks-lurk-in-dna-tests-experts-warn/.

[4] Id.

[5] See id.

[6] See Eric Rosenbaum, 5 Biggest Risks of Sharing Your DNA with Consumer Genetic-Testing Companies, CNBC (June 16, 2018 9:00 AM EDT), https://www.cnbc.com/2018/06/16/5-biggest-risks-of-sharing-dna-with-consumer-genetic-testing-companies.html.

[7] See id.

[8] See Cyrus Farivar, GEDmatch, a Tiny GNA Analysis Firm, was Key for Golden State Killer Case, ARS Technica (Apr. 27, 2018 10:25 AM EDT), https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2018/04/gedmatch-a-tiny-dna-analysis-firm-was-key-for-golden-state-killer-case/.

[9]See id.

[10] See Laurel Wamsley, After Arrest of Suspected Golden State Killer, Details of His Life Emerge, NPR (Apr. 26, 2018 3:51 PM ET), https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2018/04/26/606060349/after-arrest-of-suspected-golden-state-killer-details-of-his-life-emerge.

[11]See Emily Shapiro & Jenna Harrison, Suspected ‘Golden State Killer,’ Accused of Murders Across California, to Face Trial in Sacramento: Officials, ABC News (Aug. 21, 2018 2:20 PM ET), https://abcnews.go.com/US/suspected-golden-state-killer-accused-murders-california-face/story?id=57292961.

[12] See Y. Erlich et al., Identity Inference of Genomic Data Using Long-Range Familial Searches, Science Mag. (Oct. 11, 2018), http://science.sciencemag.org/content/sci/early/2018/10/10/science.aau4832.full.pdf.

[13]See Y. Erlich et al., Identity Inference of Genomic Data Using Long-Range Familial Searches, Science Mag. (Oct. 11, 2018), http://science.sciencemag.org/content/sci/early/2018/10/10/science.aau4832.full.pdf.

[14] See Emily Shapiro & Jenna Harrison, Suspected ‘Golden State Killer,’ Accused of Murders Across California, to Face Trial in Sacramento: Officials, ABC News (Aug. 21, 2018 2:20 PM ET), https://abcnews.go.com/US/suspected-golden-state-killer-accused-murders-california-face/story?id=57292961.

[15]See Y. Erlich et al., Identity Inference of Genomic Data Using Long-Range Familial Searches, Science Mag. (Oct. 11, 2018), http://science.sciencemag.org/content/sci/early/2018/10/10/science.aau4832.full.pdf.

[16] See id.

[17] See id; See also Cyrus Farivar, GEDmatch, a Tiny GNA Analysis Firm, was Key for Golden State Killer Case, ARS Technica (Apr. 27, 2018 10:25 AM EDT), https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2018/04/gedmatch-a-tiny-dna-analysis-firm-was-key-for-golden-state-killer-case/.

[18] See id.

[19] See id.

[20] See id.

[21] See Cyrus Farivar, GEDmatch, a Tiny GNA Analysis Firm, was Key for Golden State Killer Case, ARS Technica (Apr. 27, 2018 10:25 AM EDT), https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2018/04/gedmatch-a-tiny-dna-analysis-firm-was-key-for-golden-state-killer-case/.

[22] See id.

[23] See Patrick Cain, Privacy Risks Lurk in DNA Tests, Experts Warn, Global News (Aug. 15, 2018 8:00 AM EDT), https://globalnews.ca/news/2879276/privacy-risks-lurk-in-dna-tests-experts-warn/.

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