It’s becoming common knowledge that direct-to-consumer (DTC) DNA test kit companies don’t always handle DNA with utmost privacy standards. DNA has been used for multiple scams and is sold to third parties. DTC DNA companies have also faced security breaches in which their databases have been hacked and genetic information leaked.

Is there a way to protect your genetic information? Michael Edge, a qualitative and computational biologist at the University of Southern California, helps us understand the security policies of DTC companies.

1. If users can upload their own genetic data into a database, the database has a greater chance of being hacked or exploited.
2. Some platforms reveal which genes potential relatives share and how long those genetic sequences are. These platforms release more of your genetic information than you may have signed up for.
3. If the platform allows users to search for specific segments, they can acquire more information about your genetics, even if they’re not related to you.

While these are all important considerations when choosing a DTC DNA test company, the best way to maintain your privacy is by using DNA Paternity Testing. With DNA Paternity Testing, you don’t have to worry about security breaches, HIPAA violations, or databases. Your genetic results are safe with you–and safe with us.

DNA Paternity Testing provides rock-solid answers to important questions like parentage and ancestry. With over 2,000 centers nationwide, DNA Paternity Testing Centers is one of the largest, most affordable, networks of accredited DNA testing labs in the United States. Our price is unbeatable without sacrificing quality. We offer DNA testing for paternity, maternity and all other relationships (grandparents, siblings, aunts/uncles).

Call us today at 866.944.9546 or ORDER ONLINE!

Using a direct-to-consumer (DTC) DNA test has many draws. You could discover long-lost relatives, learn your heritage, or possibly what health conditions you might encounter in the future.

However, experts like Michael Edge, a qualitative and computational biologist at the University of Southern California, caution that using DTC tests is a gamble with your most private information–your DNA.

Edge compares your DNA with other private information such as your social security number or credit card number. While a hacker could wreak havoc by obtaining your social security number or credit card number, these don’t give the hacker an increasing knowledge of your personhood. On the other hand, as science evolves, the DNA you submit to DTC becomes more and more valuable because they can extract increasingly more information from it.

Some DTC companies share your genetic information with third parties by default. But companies who require consent to share data aren’t innocent; these companies take one consent and apply it to all other third-party partnerships.

In 2017, one study found that 35 of 90 companies DTC companies had no protocol on how they would handle biological samples or genetic data.

To summarize what has been said: it all comes back to money. DTC DNA companies first sell you a product to uncover some whimsical or practical information. But then, these companies sell off your genetic information to third-party companies. Finally, DTC companies can continue to make a profit off your DNA for decades to come as we learn more about human DNA.

If you’re looking for genetic information, don’t turn to a DTC DNA test. Instead, submit your DNA sample through DNA Paternity Testing. We take privacy very seriously and don’t sell your genetic information to third parties.

DNA Paternity Testing provides rock-solid answers to important questions like parentage and ancestry. With over 2,000 centers nationwide, DNA Paternity Testing Centers is one of the largest, most affordable, networks of accredited DNA testing labs in the United States. Our price is unbeatable without sacrificing quality. We offer DNA testing for paternity, maternity and all other relationships (grandparents, siblings, aunts/uncles).

Call us today at 866.944.9546 or ORDER ONLINE!

24 years ago, Guo Xinzhen was kidnapped from his front yard by human traffickers. Guo’s father vowed to never stop searching for his son.

The event happened in 1997 when Guo was kidnapped from his home in Shandong, China, by a female suspect named Tang. Tang and her partner sold Guo to a neighboring province called Henan.

True to his word, Guo’s father traveled over 310,000 miles on his motorbike. His dedication to finding his son inspired the film “Lost and Love.”

“Only on the road, I felt I am a father,” he told the Shandong-based Qilu News in 2015 before the movie was released. “I have no reason to stop (searching). And it’s impossible for me to stop.”

But it wasn’t until recently when genetic testing was able to track down and confirm Guo as the missing son.

The reunification was able to be broadcasted on Chinese state television CCTV. Father and son exchanged a tearful embrace, and Guo’s mother could be heard saying “My baby, you came back.”

Guo’s father proudly told the watching audience, “Now that the child has been found, everything can only be happy from now on.”

DNA Paternity Testing provides rock-solid answers to important questions like parentage and ancestry. With over 2,000 centers nationwide, DNA Paternity Testing Centers is one of the largest, most affordable, networks of accredited DNA testing labs in the United States. Our price is unbeatable without sacrificing quality. We offer DNA testing for paternity, maternity and all other relationships (grandparents, siblings, aunts/uncles).

Call us today at 866.944.9546 or ORDER ONLINE!

Alaskan law enforcement is required by law to collect DNA samples from all people charged with a crime against another person or a felony. However, this hasn’t happened in thousands of cases over the past 25 years. In fact, more than 21,000 DNA samples are missing from crimes.

Determined to reduce the rate of sexual assaults and other violent crimes, Alaskan Governor Mike Dunleavy announced that law enforcement will collect the missing data and begin correctly obtaining new data.

“Government has an obligation to follow the law,” he said. “And regardless of the many reasons that these DNA collections were missed, we are focused on making our … state a safer place to live.”

Dunleavy rightly pointed out that it’s not fair to the victims for their cases to be dropped or not receive a resolution in a timely manner.

“We want to get the kits processed timely, we want to get back to victims timely and we want to collect this DNA to help us solve those crimes,” he said.

This is an overwhelming amount of data to collect, so Alaskan law enforcement will start with those convicted of violent and sex crimes, which is about 600 people. It’s admirable that the state is seeking to hold its criminals accountable.

DNA Paternity Testing provides rock-solid answers to important questions like parentage and ancestry. With over 2,000 centers nationwide, DNA Paternity Testing Centers is one of the largest, most affordable, networks of accredited DNA testing labs in the United States. Our price is unbeatable without sacrificing quality. We offer DNA testing for paternity, maternity and all other relationships (grandparents, siblings, aunts/uncles).

Call us today at 866.944.9546 or ORDER ONLINE!

It’s a parent’s worst nightmare: to have your child stolen. That’s what happened to Betty Jones sixty years ago.

While Jones was giving birth to his younger sibling, 2-year-old Lewis Thompson was stolen by his babysitter and given to an older couple. Thompson grew up as an only child knowing that he was adopted.

Thompson’s adopted father died when he was 14, and his adopted mother went psychotic a few months later and was committed to an asylum. Thompson spent the next four years in foster care until he became a shoe salesman at 18. Thompson met his wife while attending a shoe conference in Las Vegas. They married in 2009 and moved to her home in Australia.

Thompson’s wife, Christine, prompted him to take a DNA test and he agreed. That’s when he was matched with his brother Lammie and the whole story unfolded. In a dramatic twist, the brothers discovered they had lived a block apart their whole childhood.

“I lived on 138th [in Harlem], and my family lived on 139th,” said Thompson. “When I was 8 or 9 years old, a friend asked me if I had a sister. He said he’d seen a girl ‘round the corner at Miss Susie’s candy store, who looked just like me. I saw her one time, too, and agreed. But it didn’t occur to me that we might be related.”

They were in fact related; that girl was his older sister, Wanda.

Even with their close proximity, the siblings had never met as kids because Thompson went to public school and his siblings went to Catholic school. Thompson’s mother was careful to keep her children off the Harlem streets, and Thompson was required to be inside when the street lights came on.

But now, the siblings have reunited and their family is complete.

DNA Paternity Testing provides rock-solid answers to important questions like parentage and ancestry. With over 2,000 centers nationwide, DNA Paternity Testing Centers is one of the largest, most affordable, networks of accredited DNA testing labs in the United States. Our price is unbeatable without sacrificing quality. We offer DNA testing for paternity, maternity and all other relationships (grandparents, siblings, aunts/uncles).

Call us today at 866.944.9546 or ORDER ONLINE!

DNA technology is always expanding, and now it has expanded to your favorite furry pets. That’s right, if you enjoyed the thrill of uncovering your ancestry, you can experience the same excitement from learning your dog’s ancestry, as well.

Similar to human take-at-home tests, simply swab the inside of your dog’s cheek and sending it to be analyzed. The most prestigious dog DNA kit companies give you an analysis of breed and genetic health risks.

Dog DNA databases have skyrocketed in the last decade. One direct-to-consumer company, Wisdom Panel, has tested the DNA of over 2.5 million pets since its launch in 2007.

Each dog has their own personality traits and quirks. These are some of the things we love most about our pets. But DNA testing can give you greater insight into these traits. For instance, certain behavioral tendencies can be attributed to a certain breed.

Most importantly, dog DNA kits give us the information we need to help our dogs live their happiest, healthiest lives. With the genetic information, you can know what to expect as your dog ages and what can make them the most comfortable and happy.

While DNA Paternity Testing doesn’t provide dog DNA kits, we do provide rock-solid answers to important questions like parentage and ancestry. With over 2,000 centers nationwide, DNA Paternity Testing Centers is one of the largest, most affordable, networks of accredited DNA testing labs in the United States. Our price is unbeatable without sacrificing quality. We offer DNA testing for paternity, maternity and all other relationships (grandparents, siblings, aunts/uncles).

Call us today at 866.944.9546 or ORDER ONLINE!

A typical reunification story usually involves an individual finding a parent or a couple of siblings. But this story is exponentially bigger and more fun!

Duane Weaver grew up in Mankato, Minnesota with a younger brother and older half-brother. Weaver wasn’t aware that he had been adopted.

“Growing up I really didn’t have a clue,” he said.

The world as Weaver knew it changed about 15 years ago when he received a call from an adoption agency informing him that he might have another biological sibling who had been adopted and if he would like contact information.

Weaver agreed and met his first sister, whom his mother had as a teenager and put up for adoption. The adoption agency also said that he had other siblings that had been adopted, but for years, Weaver didn’t have any leads on his other siblings.

Then last year, Genna Batycki reached out to Weaver because she had sent her DNA to the 23andMe and learned she and Weaver shared some relatives. Weaver sent in his own DNA and learned he and Batycki’s father, Chuck Roseberry, were half brothers.

The 23andMe report also revealed Weaver had another half-sibling, however, he has not been able to contact her and he is not sure if she is still living.

Finally, Weaver was able to determine his biological father, Earl Kleist, had six other children. So far, Weaver has met or talked to two of those new siblings. Between his mother and father, in total, Weaver discovered nine new siblings in total!

With the pandemic, Weaver is cautious to not pressure families into reunification if they’re not interested in welcoming them into their lives at this time.

DNA Paternity Testing provides rock-solid answers to important questions like parentage and ancestry. With over 2,000 centers nationwide, DNA Paternity Testing Centers is one of the largest, most affordable, networks of accredited DNA testing labs in the United States. Our price is unbeatable without sacrificing quality. We offer DNA testing for paternity, maternity and all other relationships (grandparents, siblings, aunts/uncles).

Call us today at 866.944.9546 or ORDER ONLINE!

Whether it’s exploring your heritage, learning your country of origin, or finding your parents, DNA testing has many benefits. However, it’s crucial when doing a DNA test to pick a company that takes the utmost care to protect your privacy.

Unfortunately, direct-to-consumer DNA companies like 23andMe, Ancestry, GEDmatch, and FamilyTreeDNA all come with a high risk of a security breach. Not only do these companies sell your genetic information to drug and pharmaceutical companies, but their databases can be hacked, packages can be intercepted in the mail, and your genetic information can be used in scams.

Additionally, these companies allow police to use their databases for forensic purposes. However, Maryland and Montana are taking a stand on the authorization of police to access genetic databases.

Starting October 1, Maryland will require law enforcement to get a judge’s sign-off before using genetic databases. It will also limit its use to serious crimes like murder, kidnapping, and human trafficking, and investigators can only use databases that explicitly warn users that their information might be used to investigate crimes.

Similarly, Montana law enforcement would need a warrant before accessing a genetic database unless the users waived their rights to privacy.

These are important steps towards protecting our privacy. However, there’s another way around the system. DNA Paternity Testing values your privacy, so you can rest assured that your genetic information is safe with us. We never sell genetic information to other companies and are HIPAA-compliant.

DNA Paternity Testing provides rock-solid answers to important questions like parentage and ancestry. With over 2,000 centers nationwide, DNA Paternity Testing Centers is one of the largest, most affordable, networks of accredited DNA testing labs in the United States. Our price is unbeatable without sacrificing quality. We offer DNA testing for paternity, maternity and all other relationships (grandparents, siblings, aunts/uncles).

Call us today at 866.944.9546 or ORDER ONLINE!

It’s a conclusion that’s hard to argue with, and one that’s taken without much pushback: individuals who live to be 100 years of age or older must have good genes. Now, Italian scientists have confirmed that this is the case.

“The 105 threshold is really tough to jump and those who surpass it are really super athletes in terms of aging,” according to Paolo Garagnani, PhD, associate professor of general pathology at the University of Bologna.

In addition to living an extended lifespan, these elders–termed “super centenarians” by the scientists–are often able to avoid the long periods of illness that can plague the end of an elder’s life.

Curious to know how these individuals live so long, Garagnani and his team searched in Italy for those aged 105 or greater. Italy was ideal for Garagnani’s research because Italy’s life expectancy is one of the longest in the world. Additionally, the regional Catholic Church has kept extensive records of baptisms, which helped the researchers confirm the ages of the participants.

Garagnani’s team took blood samples from 81 participants and then conducted whole-genome sequencing to look for differences between the super centenarians and younger generations. They concluded that those who live past 100 have a genetic makeup that makes their bodies very efficient at repairing DNA. They were also at a lower risk for cancer, heart attack, and stroke.

DNA Paternity Testing provides rock-solid answers to important questions like parentage and ancestry. With over 2,000 centers nationwide, DNA Paternity Testing Centers is one of the largest, most affordable, networks of accredited DNA testing labs in the United States. Our price is unbeatable without sacrificing quality. We offer DNA testing for paternity, maternity and all other relationships (grandparents, siblings, aunts/uncles).

Call us today at 866.944.9546 or ORDER ONLINE!

If you haven’t contracted COVID-19 and are nervous to re-enter society, you might be tempted by this sales pitch.

An Australian company is currently marketing a DNA test to American consumers that predicts how deadly COVID-19 would be to you if you were to contract it. All you have to do is spit in a tube, mail off your DNA, and find out if you’re one of the 10-15% of Americans who might end up in the hospital or die from the virus.

The test costs $175 test and uses genetic markers linked to severe COVID-19 and other risk factors to determine an individual’s potential COVID-19 severity.

“I think it’s premature to use a genetic test to predict a person’s likely COVID-19 severity. We don’t understand exactly what these genetic variants mean or how they affect disease,” says genetic epidemiologist Priya Duggal of Johns Hopkins University.

Instead of being helpful, Priya Duggal is concerned that this test might encourage risky social behavior in individuals who receive a result indicating their severity risk is low. Duggal recommends treatment options remain the same regardless of if the test indicates a patient has a higher chance of death.

Although the test is available for purchase, it should be noted that the test has not been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

While a potentially helpful tool in the future, this test is not ready to be used to make medical decisions. Scientists are determined to continue studying and developing a DNA test, but in the meantime, it’s best to not waste your money.

DNA Paternity Testing provides rock-solid answers to important questions like parentage and ancestry. With over 2,000 centers nationwide, DNA Paternity Testing Centers is one of the largest, most affordable, networks of accredited DNA testing labs in the United States. Our price is unbeatable without sacrificing quality. We offer DNA testing for paternity, maternity and all other relationships (grandparents, siblings, aunts/uncles).

Call us today at 866.944.9546 or ORDER ONLINE!