The IRB has had some heated discussions about genetic testing done now, and also the potential for future testing of stored biological specimens. This article from the Los Angeles Times delves into issues we’ve discussed before on the blog — the use of genetic information made available by people who voluntarily use publicly available genetic tests to check their ancestry. Law enforcement agencies and these companies have varying (or in some cases, no) policies about the use of these databases to solve crimes. And while some companies allow their customers to opt in or out of this type of data sharing, the relatives of these customers who can be identified via this data won’t have that same option.