Our Privacy Philosophy
Privacy for Your AncestryDNA Test
Similar to Ancestry.com, the AncestryDNA mission is to help everyone discover, preserve, and share their family history through the use of genetic testing and analysis. Using your DNA to discover new information about your family history is a great way to get started with your search or take it to another level. We recognize that your DNA is very personal and so protecting your privacy is at the core of what we do.
We also encourage you to read our comprehensive AncestryDNA Privacy Statement, which explains in more detail how we collect and process your personal data. Ancestry.com DNA, LLC is a subsidiary of Ancestry.com Operations Inc., the world’s largest online family history resource.
How is my DNA data protected?
+
You trust us with your DNA so we in turn employ a number of measures to protect it; here are some of the things that we do:
1. The results of your DNA test are stored in an encrypted database — your AncestryDNA™ results are encrypted and stored in our database, which employs a number of security measures. As well as protecting the information from unauthorized access from those outside of AncestryDNA, we strictly limit access to this database from within the company as well.
2. Your DNA sample is securely stored — After testing is complete, any remaining DNA from your test is archived and stored in a temperature-controlled, secure facility with 24 hour monitoring and limited access to only a small list of authorized DNA team members.
3. The lab processing your DNA doesn't have access to your personal information — DNA samples are tested in a secure third-party testing lab in the United States. We separate your identity from your DNA sample throughout the testing process. Instead, we use only your unique Activation Code provided in your kit to track your DNA through the testing process.
4. Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) — In addition to the AncestryDNA protections, United States law (the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act or “GINA”) generally makes it illegal for health insurance companies, group health plans, and most employers to discriminate against you based on your genetic information. Learn more about GINA here.
5. You have the choice to delete your DNA test results — Once a DNA test result is deleted, you will no longer see the results in your account. Also, your DNA matches will no longer see your username among their list of matches. If you have given your consent to participate in ongoing research efforts, only raw de-identified DNA data will remain in the research database unless you wish to be removed from that as well. So be sure you want to delete a DNA test result before you do it, there’s no way to recover the data after it’s deleted.
6. Can my DNA information ever be disclosed without my consent? — Generally no. But there are some very limited circumstances where your DNA test results could be disclosed to third parties without your express consent. For example:
· As may be required by law with regulatory and law enforcement authorities;
· To prevent fraud or cybercrime (i.e.) to protect the rights or property of AncestryDNA or other Users (including outside your country of residence).
· To enforce our terms and conditions; to protect our rights, privacy, safety, confidentiality, reputation or property, and/or that of Ancestry family of companies, you or others.
· For more information please see the AncestryDNA Privacy Statement.
What are my privacy settings with AncestryDNA?
+
Throughout your AncestryDNA™ experience, we want to ensure that you are comfortable with your settings and how much content you wish to make public. Below are some ways that you can control the privacy settings of your AncestryDNA account and DNA results pages.
1. Username: You can choose how your name appears to your DNA matches. Here are your options:
- You may use your Ancestry.com “username” or your real name
- You can edit your Ancestry.com “username” anytime (but remember this change will be reflected throughout the Ancestry.com website, so editing this will also affect how you login).
- For more information go to "How are living people protected by AncestryDNA?" (below)
2. Ethnicity profile: You can decide how much of your complete genetic ethnicity profile you want to make viewable to your DNA matches.
Your DNA matches can either see:
- All the ethnicity regions reported in your DNA test
- Only the ethnicity regions that they have in common with you
3. Family tree: You can choose whether or not to link your DNA test to an Ancestry.com family tree.
- Learn more about privacy for your Ancestry.com family tree here.
4. Deleting your test results: If you desire, you can choose to delete your DNA test results.
- Your DNA results will be removed from Ancestry.com
- Your DNA matches will no longer see you in their DNA member match list
- Deleting a test is permanent and cannot be undone
5. Access to test results: If you are the person who purchases and activates your test on our website, then only you will have access to your DNA results. If a kit is purchased for another person, then both the purchaser and activator of the kit will have access to the results.
6. Additional privacy information about your AncestryDNA and Ancestry.com accounts:
- No one can search to see if you have taken a DNA test—only your DNA matches can see you in their list of potential matches.
- Your DNA match cannot see your other DNA matches.
- Neither you nor any potential matches can view the “raw” scientific DNA data that the ethnicity predictions and matches are derived from.
- For more information on your Ancestry.com profile and personal information go here.
How are living people protected by AncestryDNA?
+
Protecting the privacy of our customers is very important to us. Since DNA test results typically belong to living people, here are some specific ways we protect living people:
1. There is no “search” for people with DNA test results — a person cannot search our AncestryDNA™ database by name (or at all for that matter). You can only see another person in the database if you are determined as a DNA match.
2. You are identified by your user name or full name — You can choose how your name appears to your DNA matches. This allows you to be as anonymous as you would like to be. In the event the test taker is not the administrator (the original purchaser) of the test, only the test takers initials identify the test along with the administrator’s Ancestry.com account display name. To see how your information is displayed to a potential match, please visit "Manage Test Settings" on the DNA status page.
Example of how a username can be anonymous. Notice the name of the AncestryDNA user is shown only by their username,“familyhistfan54”.
Example of how a DNA match will appear if they do not have an Ancestry.com account. Notice the name of the AncestryDNA user is shown only by their initials,“J.H.”.
3. You can see how your matches see you — To clearly communicate how your DNA matches see your test information, on your DNA account page, you can see how your test is shown to others. Example:
Learn more about the privacy of your family tree here.
Loading...