Kate LakeA DNA-testing agency seems to have ceased buying and selling – with out telling its prospects what has occurred to the extremely delicate information they shared with it.
Atlas Biomed, which has places of work in London, provided to offer insights into individuals’s genetic make up in addition to their predisposition to sure sicknesses.
Nevertheless, customers are now not capable of entry their personalised stories on-line and the corporate has not responded to the BBC’s requests for remark.
Clients of the agency describe the scenario as “very alarming” and say they need solutions about what has occurred to their “most private info”.
The regulator, the Info Commissioner’s Workplace (ICO), has confirmed it has acquired a grievance about Atlas Biomed.
“Folks have the suitable to anticipate that organisations will deal with their private info securely and responsibly,” it stated in an announcement.
Consultants say it reveals how customers of DNA-testing companies can discover themselves “utterly on the mercy” of such firms in the case of defending very delicate information.
Disappearing DNA stories
Lisa Topping, from Saffron Walden, Essex, despatched a saliva pattern to Atlas Biomed a number of years in the past, paying round £100 for a personalised genetic report.
In addition to telling her about her DNA profile, it claimed to additionally inform her about her predisposition to ailments and even accidents, making an allowance for info she had offered in an accompanying questionnaire.
She might entry her report on-line – which she checked once in a while – till someday the web site disappeared. She acquired no reply when she contacted them to ask what had occurred.
“I don’t know what another person might do with [the data] but it surely’s essentially the most private info… I don’t know the way comfy I really feel that they’ve simply disappeared,” Lisa advised me.
In 2023, Kate Lake from Tonbridge, Kent, paid Atlas Biomed £139 for a report it by no means delivered.
It promised her a refund – then went silent, regardless of her making an attempt each technique of contact she might discover.
“I simply by no means heard again from anybody, it’s like no-one was at dwelling,” she stated.
She describes the scenario as “very alarming.”
“What occurs now to that info they’ve? I wish to hear some solutions,” she stated.
The BBC was additionally unable to contact Atlas Biomed.
A cellphone quantity listed for the corporate is lifeless. The BBC visited its places of work in London, however there was no signal of Atlas Biomed there.
The agency’s Instagram account, with over 11,000 followers, was final up to date in March 2022. Its remaining publish on X was in August the identical yr.
It shared a publish on Fb in June 2023, however didn’t reply to any of the feedback – which had been full of individuals complaining about being unable to contact it or entry their profiles.
FbRussia hyperlinks
The obvious disappearance of Atlas Biomed is a thriller – but it surely seems to have hyperlinks with Russia.
It’s nonetheless listed as an lively firm with Corporations Home, the place all UK-based companies should register. Nevertheless, it has not filed any accounts since December 2022.
It lists eight official positions – although 4 of its officers have resigned.
Two of the apparently remaining officers are listed on the identical handle in Moscow – as is a Russian billionaire, who’s described as a now resigned director.
Atlas Biomed’s registered workplace is close to London’s so-called Silicon Roundabout, one of many prime areas within the UK for tech companies.
When the BBC visited, there was no signal of Atlas Biomed itself, however an organization registration agency based mostly within the constructing confirmed that it was a shopper of theirs, and legitimately used the handle as its personal.
This agency, in an e-mail, claimed that it couldn’t put the BBC in contact with Atlas Biomed “for safety functions”.
“We extremely counsel that you simply contact them immediately,” it stated.
No-one from Atlas Biomed has responded to the BBC’s makes an attempt to contact it.
Cybersecurity skilled Prof Alan Woodward stated the obvious hyperlinks to Russia had been “odd.”
“If individuals knew the provenance of this firm and the way it operates they may not be fairly so able to belief them with their DNA,” he advised the BBC.
‘At their mercy’
None of this explains the place Atlas Biomed’s database of buyer DNA has ended up – and the BBC has seen no proof it’s being misused.
However Prof Carissa Veliz – creator of Privateness is Energy – factors out that DNA is arguably essentially the most invaluable private information you could have. It’s uniquely yours, you possibly can’t change it, and it reveals your – and by extension, your loved ones’s – organic strengths and weaknesses.
Biometric information is given particular safety underneath the UK’s model of GDPR, the information safety regulation.
“Whenever you give your information to an organization you’re utterly at their mercy and you’ve got to have the ability to belief them,” Prof Veliz stated.
“We shouldn’t have to attend till one thing occurs.”
Further reporting by Graham Fraser
In at present’s digital age, having an expert on-line presence is essential for healthcare suppliers. At msmbbs.com, we specialise in medical web site design companies tailor-made to fulfill the particular wants of medical doctors, clinics, and hospitals. Our skilled workforce ensures that your web site just isn’t solely aesthetically pleasing but in addition user-friendly and compliant with business requirements, together with HIPAA compliance.
We perceive the significance of making customized healthcare web sites that present seamless navigation and a very good consumer expertise. Our companies embrace:
Customized Web site Design: Tailor-made to replicate your apply’s model and values.
web optimization Optimization: We provide specialised medical web optimization companies to make sure your web site ranks excessive in search engine outcomes, attracting extra sufferers.
Affected person Portal Integration: Offering a safe and handy manner for sufferers to entry their medical info.
Appointment Scheduling Techniques: Streamlining the reserving course of for each sufferers and workers.
For those who’re seeking to improve your on-line presence and join with extra sufferers, go to msmbbs.com and uncover how we might help you create a state-of-the-art medical web site that adheres to the best requirements of healthcare internet design.
Are you on the lookout for top-notch digital companies to raise what you are promoting? Look no additional than TheProMakers.com, your one-stop answer for a variety of digital choices, together with internet design and improvement, web optimization optimization, content material creation companies, and digital advertising and marketing options.
Our workforce of consultants focuses on offering high-quality companies tailor-made to your particular wants. With a concentrate on delivering measurable outcomes, we be certain that what you are promoting stands out within the aggressive digital panorama. Our choices embrace:
Net Design & Improvement: We create visually interesting and purposeful web sites that improve consumer expertise.
web optimization & Digital Advertising and marketing: Our web optimization optimization methods assist increase your on-line visibility and drive focused site visitors to your web site.
Content material Writing: We provide skilled content material creation companies, crafting partaking and informative content material that resonates together with your target market.
Graphic Design & Branding: Our workforce develops distinctive model identities and crowd pleasing visuals that seize consideration.
Be part of the rising record of glad purchasers who’ve reworked their companies with the assistance of TheProMakers.com Whether or not you are a startup or a longtime firm, our complete digital advertising and marketing options are designed to fulfill your wants and exceed your expectations.
