The Texas-based company offers DNA analysis for genealogical purposes, allowing customers to “discover [their] ethnic and geographic origins”, “break through brick walls and find unknown relatives”, and “join the world’s most comprehensive DNA database”.

In December 2018, the company attracted attention when it changed its terms of service to allow law enforcement to access its DNA database to identify suspects of violent crime, as well as identifying victims from their remains.

A BuzzFeed News investigation found that FBI officers were creating fake profiles using the DNA from unsolved crimes, which the company would use to search for possible matches. FamilyTreeDNA confirmed that it was cooperating with the FBI on fewer than 10 criminal cases. Two arrests – for murder and sexual offences – were made in January and February 2019 as a result of law enforcement access to the DNA database.

Last year, the infamous decades-long case of the ‘Golden State Killer’ was finally resolved, using the public database of DNA testing company GEDmatch. Several of the suspect’s relatives had added their DNA to the database, allowing law enforcement to identify and charge the suspect.

The agreement between the FBI and FamilyTreeDNA was, however, the first case of a private database being accessed by law enforcement.

The company was criticised for entering this data-sharing agreement without informing its customers. In January this year, FamilyTreeDNA founder Bennett Greenspan said he was working to introduce a framework which could “help prevent violent crimes and ensure the privacy of customers.”

According to New Scientist, FamilyTreeDNA has now told its customers that it will allow them to opt out of allowing law enforcement to access their genetic data. Law enforcement officers will be required to go through a more rigorous process in order to access the database, while customers who opt out of allowing the FBI to access their data will still be able to search for possible relatives as before.

“Users now have the ability to opt out of matching with DNA relatives whose accounts are flagged as being created to identify the remains of a deceased individual or a perpetrator of homicide or sexual assault, also referred to as Law Enforcement Matching (LEM),” the company wrote in an email to customers.

The Texas-based company offers DNA analysis for genealogical purposes, allowing customers to “discover [their] ethnic and geographic origins”, “break through brick walls and find unknown relatives”, and “join the world’s most comprehensive DNA database”.

In December 2018, the company attracted attention when it changed its terms of service to allow law enforcement to access its DNA database to identify suspects of violent crime, as well as identifying victims from their remains.

A BuzzFeed News investigation found that FBI officers were creating fake profiles using the DNA from unsolved crimes, which the company would use to search for possible matches. FamilyTreeDNA confirmed that it was cooperating with the FBI on fewer than 10 criminal cases. Two arrests – for murder and sexual offences – were made in January and February 2019 as a result of law enforcement access to the DNA database.

Last year, the infamous decades-long case of the ‘Golden State Killer’ was finally resolved, using the public database of DNA testing company GEDmatch. Several of the suspect’s relatives had added their DNA to the database, allowing law enforcement to identify and charge the suspect.

The agreement between the FBI and FamilyTreeDNA was, however, the first case of a private database being accessed by law enforcement.

The company was criticised for entering this data-sharing agreement without informing its customers. In January this year, FamilyTreeDNA founder Bennett Greenspan said he was working to introduce a framework which could “help prevent violent crimes and ensure the privacy of customers.”

According to New Scientist, FamilyTreeDNA has now told its customers that it will allow them to opt out of allowing law enforcement to access their genetic data. Law enforcement officers will be required to go through a more rigorous process in order to access the database, while customers who opt out of allowing the FBI to access their data will still be able to search for possible relatives as before.

“Users now have the ability to opt out of matching with DNA relatives whose accounts are flagged as being created to identify the remains of a deceased individual or a perpetrator of homicide or sexual assault, also referred to as Law Enforcement Matching (LEM),” the company wrote in an email to customers.