5 biggest risks of sharing your DNA with consumer genetic-testing companies

The business of personal genetic-testing kits is booming, with consumers able to learn about their ancestry and health risks at the cost of just $99 to a few hundred dollars. Should you be afraid?

Some individuals worry they will discover things about their DNA that will be frightening — namely, the risks they run of contracting various diseases — and not know how to move forward with the information. Professional scientific skeptics contend the information may not even be as accurate as claimed, and lead people to make questionable health decisions. But there's another type of risk that consumers aren't focusing on as much, and it's a big one: privacy. There is nothing more private than your personal genetic information, and sending away for a personal genome kit means sharing your DNA with the testing companies. What do they do with it, beyond providing consumers with genetic and health assessments?

More than 80 percent of 23andMe customers agree to let the company share their DNA with research partners.

That's a question consumers need to weigh as they consider genome testing...