The well-known DNA testing company 23andMe has declared bankruptcy and announced the immediate resignation of Anne Wojcicki, its co-founder and CEO. The business will now try to sell itself while being watched by a judge.
In a press statement, 23andMe stated that “there are no changes to the way the company stores, manages, or protects customer data” and that it intends to continue business as usual during the selling process.
In light of 23andMe’s “reported financial distress,” the Attorney General of California, the company’s home state, sent a consumer notice on Friday urging users to remove their data from the website. Customers and investors once praised 23andMe’s saliva-based test kits, which contributed to the company’s valuation rising to $6 billion (£4.6 billion). However, it has been fighting for its life.
The business was established in 2006 and went public in 2021, yet it has never made money. In September, a lawsuit alleging that the company failed to protect the privacy of almost seven million consumers whose personal information was exposed in a 2023 data breach was settled. Hackers have occasionally used customers’ outdated passwords to obtain family trees, birth years, and geographic locations. The corporation claims that DNA records were not among the stolen material.
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