A security breach opened up access to a genealogy site’s DNA profiles

Over the weekend, a security breach changed the permission settings on millions of profiles in GEDmatch, a DNA database used by genealogists. For three hours, DNA profiles were visible to all members, including law enforcement agencies, which sometim...

Justice Department sets rules for using genealogy sites to solve crimes

Investigators have used genealogy sites to solve a string of cold cases in recent years, but the US hasn't really had a firm stance on how and when to use those sites. There's now a basic framework in place, however. The Justice Department has esta...

Airbnb’s ‘heritage travel’ section is for exploring 23andMe results

23andMe has partnered with Airbnb to let users literally explore their roots. The travel website now has a special "heritage travel" section divided into the genetic populations you'd find in a 23andMe ancestry report. The regions include Sub-Saharan...

Family Tree DNA will let customers opt-out of the FBI’s genetic data access

Genealogy company Family Tree DNA hit the headlines last month after it was revealed the firm had given law enforcement agencies access to its DNA database. The FBI was allowed to comb through the information in a bid to identify crime suspects, igni...

Police are using ancestry sites to track down more cold case suspects

In April, California investigators arrested Joseph James DeAngelo for some of the crimes committed by the elusive Golden State Killer (GSK), a man who is believed to have raped over 50 women and murdered at least 12 people between 1978 and 1986. Inve...

DNA is just another way we can’t opt out of data sharing

Growing up in California, serial killers are as much a fact of life as year-round citrus or having a bit of Spanish in your daily vocabulary. News of the Golden State Killer's arrest came as a surprise and a relief to most of us whose early lives wer...

Jimmy Carter Teaches Bible Classes 3 Days After Cancer Radiation Treatment


Cancer won't stop former president Jimmy Carter from teaching Bible class. According to CBSNews.com, Carter taught two Sunday School classes on Aug. 23. One was at Maranatha Baptist Church in...