The digitization of our DNA can do a lot of great things for humanity and especially in the medical field. With that being said, I do not think it should even be considered until we ensure that we have a well-constructed security infrastructure in place. This data is far too sensitive and valuable to just hand over to any company. The digitization of our DNA can do wonderful things in the medical field and can help cure conditions thought to be incurable before. However, at this point in time I don’t think we can ensure that the data would be secure enough at this point in time with cyberattacks being more prevalent than ever. I know I would not feel comfortable putting my DNA into cyberspace. What separates your digital DNA from every other piece of sensitive information out there is that if it gets compromised, there’s no changing your DNA; that is permanent.

With the emergence of digital DNA, BioCybersecurity is becoming a very important space in the cybersecurity world. The digitization of DNA is still a very fresh concept, and there are a lot of unknowns that are being discussed within the BioCybersecurity field. Talks of threat actors weaponizing DNA to create pathogens and lethal diseases, to using DNA to spread malware, these are all things that are made possible with digital DNA. DNA digitization has enormous potential for medical advancement and individualized treatment, but the risks, both ethical and cybersecurity-related, are too great to be disregarded. We run the risk of leaving the most unchangeable aspect of ourselves vulnerable to theft, abuse, or even weaponization if we don’t have strong safeguards. To safeguard this extremely private and irreversible data, we must first create and implement strict BioCybersecurity measures. Until then, in the quest to digitize our DNA, precaution must triumph over curiosity.

Gallegos, J. E., & Peccoud, J. (2024, February 20). DNA Has Gone Digital–What could possibly go wrong? Scientific American. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/dna-has-gone-digital-what-could-possibly-go-wrong/