Experts Outline Ethics Issues With Use of Genealogy DNA to Solve Crimes
I recently wrote about two different “cold cases” where
murderers allegedly have been identified and arrested by using
information found on the publicly-available genealogy DNA site at GEDmatch.com.
Privacy
advocates and many others have since questioned the legality of using
the information for law enforcement purposes. Admittedly, the
information is publicly available for all to see. The genealogists who
contributed the information did so willingly and presumably gave
permission for the family DNA to be available to all. However, the
relatives of the uploading genealogists may or may not have given
permission for THEIR personal DNA information to be
made available to the public. After all, it isn’t the DNA of any one
individual; it is indeed the family’s DNA information. Not all family
members have agreed to having that information made available to
genealogists, law enforcement personnel, insurance companies, and
worldwide hackers alike.
In the past, a court order was required for law enforcement personnel to legitimately invade the privacy of an individual or a family. The public information made available on GEDmatch seems to circumvent the legal protections of having a judge review the intent of law enforcement personnel. Are we giving up some of our liberties and privacy protections by making such information available?
There is also an issue of having law enforcement personnel use the information only for legitimate criminal investigations. One of the alleged murderers, commonly referred to as the Golden State Killer, reportedly was a uniformed police officer at the time he allegedly committed the rapes and murders. If GEDmatch had been available, would he have used the information on the web site to avoid identification and arrest? Indeed, GEDmatch theoretically could be used by murderers and others to evade capture.
You can find dozens of online article questioning the wisdom of making such information public. I’ll point to one such article by Carolyn Crist on the Reuters News Service web site at https://reut.rs/2szWHUq as one that describes the pros and cons of the issue. However, you can find many more articles about this issue by starting at any general-purpose Web search engine.
Perhaps the best quote of the article is, “‘Think carefully before uploading your genealogy data,’” said Benjamin Berkman, who heads the section on the ethics of genetics and new technologies at the National Institutes of Health’s Department of Bioethics in Bethesda, Maryland. ‘We’re not saying it’s unduly risky or a bad idea, but be comfortable with the idea that police may use your information to solve crimes before you sign up for these services.'”
My thanks to the many newsletter readers who sent me links to articles about these issues.
(See http://bit.ly/2J0dHye and http://bit.ly/2LPaSOs for my past articles.)
Privacy
advocates and many others have since questioned the legality of using
the information for law enforcement purposes. Admittedly, the
information is publicly available for all to see. The genealogists who
contributed the information did so willingly and presumably gave
permission for the family DNA to be available to all. However, the
relatives of the uploading genealogists may or may not have given
permission for THEIR personal DNA information to be
made available to the public. After all, it isn’t the DNA of any one
individual; it is indeed the family’s DNA information. Not all family
members have agreed to having that information made available to
genealogists, law enforcement personnel, insurance companies, and
worldwide hackers alike.In the past, a court order was required for law enforcement personnel to legitimately invade the privacy of an individual or a family. The public information made available on GEDmatch seems to circumvent the legal protections of having a judge review the intent of law enforcement personnel. Are we giving up some of our liberties and privacy protections by making such information available?
There is also an issue of having law enforcement personnel use the information only for legitimate criminal investigations. One of the alleged murderers, commonly referred to as the Golden State Killer, reportedly was a uniformed police officer at the time he allegedly committed the rapes and murders. If GEDmatch had been available, would he have used the information on the web site to avoid identification and arrest? Indeed, GEDmatch theoretically could be used by murderers and others to evade capture.
You can find dozens of online article questioning the wisdom of making such information public. I’ll point to one such article by Carolyn Crist on the Reuters News Service web site at https://reut.rs/2szWHUq as one that describes the pros and cons of the issue. However, you can find many more articles about this issue by starting at any general-purpose Web search engine.
Perhaps the best quote of the article is, “‘Think carefully before uploading your genealogy data,’” said Benjamin Berkman, who heads the section on the ethics of genetics and new technologies at the National Institutes of Health’s Department of Bioethics in Bethesda, Maryland. ‘We’re not saying it’s unduly risky or a bad idea, but be comfortable with the idea that police may use your information to solve crimes before you sign up for these services.'”
My thanks to the many newsletter readers who sent me links to articles about these issues.
14 Comments
Please can you post a reliable source that says that the
Oregon man was actually arrested. I am not aware of any such arrest,
only that he and his daughter volunteered to help that police with the
case.
Like
Dick, I don’t spot anything about a man being incarcerated in the links you provided. Do you have another link?
Like
I am not at all convinced that the arguments advanced so far
are particularly cogent or well-considered. The discovery of relatives
of criminals on GEDmatch is not evidence. The actual evidence that
provides probable cause for an arrest is the genetic match detected
between a sample from a crime scene and a sample recovered from an
individual whose identity was suggested by GEDmatch. After probable
cause is established and an arrest is made, there is still no “evidence”
admissible in criminal proceedings unless the crime scene sample
matches (by expert testimony) a sample obtained from the person who was
arrested, under appropriate judicial approval. All of the safeguards
for evidence and due process still apply, and will be determined by law
and precedent.
The more important consideration, I think, has to do with the ethics of keeping and revealing secrets. The secrets of the criminal, when discovered, should clearly be revealed in the interest of society as a whole. The classic little book by Sissela Bok, Secrets: On the Ethics of Concealment and Revelation (1983) still applies, and is still required reading for any genealogist interested in contemporary families.
The more important consideration, I think, has to do with the ethics of keeping and revealing secrets. The secrets of the criminal, when discovered, should clearly be revealed in the interest of society as a whole. The classic little book by Sissela Bok, Secrets: On the Ethics of Concealment and Revelation (1983) still applies, and is still required reading for any genealogist interested in contemporary families.
Like
Think about WWII Germany, when ALL Germans were required to
carry books showing their genealogy back several generations to show
that they had no Jewish blood. Imagine that today with your DNA or your
relatives DNA database showing you did have Jewish blood, no hiding it,
even if you didn’t know about it. Catching old murder suspects this
way is fine, even a wonderful thing, but it is a slippery slope that
could eventually lead to the Germany scenario. When you voluntarily give
your DNA to Gedmatch or even the paid sites you are also giving your
relatives DNA, even relatives you do not even know, and you are giving
it without their permission, clearly an invasion of their privacy. This
is definitely an ethics question the courts will have to answer in the
near future.
Like
The theory about criminals using GEDMatch sounds like a great premise for a mystery story/thriller. I wish I was a writer.
Like
Ok help me here. How could this be done? Even theoretically?