FamilyTreeDNA became the first company to provide direct-to-consumer DNA testing for ancestry back in 2000. FamilyTreeDNA is a division of Gene by Gene, which is a commercial genetic testing company based in Houston, Texas. FamilyTreeDNA company was founded by Bennett Greenspan, who is a lifelong entrepreneurship and genealogy enthusiast. He was studying his family history and started with his mother’s side. When he came across an obstacle, he realized that there are two cases of genetics being used to prove ancestry that had recently been covered in the media. He contacted Dr. Michael Hammer at University of Arizona, to discuss using the same method of DNA comparison for his own genealogy. Bennett then discovered that the academic lab did not provide testing directly to the public. The conversation between Bennett Greenspan and Dr. Michael Hammer sparked the idea of starting his own business. Bennett Greenspan, along with two business partners, Max Blankfeld and Jim Warren established the first genealogy with direct-to-consumer DNA testing for ancestry. In the beginning of their journey with the company, they did all of the lab testing in the Research lab at University of Arizona. Their first scientist was Dr. Michael Hammer. FamilyTreeDNA has became well known for its Y-chromosome STR testing for the Cohen Modal Haplotype.
Currently within their company, the customers have an option to purchase either Paternal Ancestry (male only), Family Ancestry, or Maternal Ancestry (female only). Once they purchase a test of their choice, they get to set up an account on the website. After that, they will take the test by swabbing the inside of their mouth and mail the kit in the prepaid package that FamilyTreeDNA provides. Like most DNA companies, FamilyTreeDNA does not send the DNA to any third party for testing. They do all of the testing on-site in their state-of-the-art laboratory. They use two different types of testing machines, HumanOmniExpress-24 chip and NovaSeq Sequencing System to receive the most accurate result. It will take about 4-8 weeks to notify the customers through email saying that their test result is on their account that they previously set up.
FamilyTreeDNA has a great place to secure all of the information from their customers. The security provides protection against loss, misuse, or alteration of customer data under their control. If the customers want to send in a complaint about their information possibly not being used properly, they can contact FamilyTreeDNA directly with the address provided on their website. FamilyTreeDNA has certified its compliance with both the EU-U.S. and Swiss-U.S. privacy Shield Frameworks as set forth by the U.S. Department of Commerce regarding the collection, use, and the personal information that is being transferred from European Union and Switzerland to the United States. According to the FamilyTreeDNA Law Enforcement Guide, in certain situations, FamilyTreeDNA may be required by law to submit by court order, valid trial, grand jury, subpoena, or search warrant for personal or genetic information. Within the Law Enforcement, they have permission to use the customers’ personal and genetic information to identify the remains of a deceased individual or to identify a perpetrator of homicide, sexual assault, or abduction.
Sources
https://www.familytreedna.com/idev_id=1773&utm_source=1773&utm_medium=affiliate
https://www.familytreedna.com/legal/privacy-statement
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