Gunnar De Winter writes:
The advances in genetics and genomics have given rise to a flourishing personal genomics industry. All you need is a credit card and you can order a DNA kit on the internet. Once it arrives, all you have to do is rub a swab over your cheeck and send it back. A little later, voila, genetic information is sent to you, indicating your risk for a certain disease, or telling you whether your child is really yours, or something else.
Doesn’t sound too bad, does it? The merits of progress one might say. Nevertheless, the ease with which this information can be misused is causing some to feel rather uncomfortable. An article, published in Nature Reviews Genetics, highlights the opportunities for DNA theft, and the lack of solid legislative measures preventing it.
Read more on Science2.0. It really raises some questions some of us have not thought enough about.