Your DNA Is Probably In a Database Without Your Consent – Interesting Engineering

And data leaks are always a possibility.

Your DNA, a long, slender molecule that contains your unique genetic code, belongs solely to you. But it's also most likely in a database somewhere, without your knowledge or consent.

Countries around the world are collecting genetic material from millions of citizens in the name of fighting crime and terrorism. This is crucial since, if you were to get robbed, you would like the government to have some type of system that's able to identify the thief. In today's world, the thief leaving a bit of their DNA could easily solve the problem since law enforcement could search it in their database to identify them.

However, with the possibility of leaks in surveillance programs, some critics say this goes into an uncharted ethical territory with data collection going possibly too far. In this video, Derek Muller of the YouTube channel Veritasium goes into greater detail about it, and while you may want to skip it if you don't want to hear serious crimes discussed, it's definitely worth a watch if you don't mind.

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Your DNA Is Probably In a Database Without Your Consent - Interesting Engineering