Demetrius Brown 

Date : 6/12/26 

The digitization of DNA has the potential to revolutionize medicine, scientific research and criminal investigations can create some serious privacy and security concerns. While DNA testing can help identify inherited diseases and  assist in solving cold cases, I believe that the benefits must be a balance with the lifelong risks of exposing the information that can never be changed. Unlike a password and social security number the DNA is permanent. If a  genetic database is breached, that information could remain available forever making the consequences to be much more severe.  

Another major concern is genetic discrimination in the workplace. Employers or insurance companies could misuse the information to predict a person’s future health risks and physical abilities. Even if they claim it is to determine whether someone is a good fit for the job, this could lead to unfair hiring and the decision to discrimination against the qualified applicants. The unauthorized individuals gain access to these databases, which could exploit the information to identify the theft, the blackmail of other unethical purposes. The strongest laws in cybersecurity are protections and necessary to ensure the genetic data is only used for its intended purpose.  

The concept of hacking humans  has become even more important when the biological data is involved . For traditional passwords it can be reset after a breach , but the DNA cannot. This means the human factor is extended beyond the avoiding phishing of emails with ever weak passwords and it also includes making careful decisions about sharing the personal genetic information. People should understand that once their DNA is in the database, they may lose control of how it is used in the future. Because of its permanent nature of the biological data that it requires the highest level of security and privacy and protection.