Description

23andMe, the personal genetics company, confirmed a security breach impacting 6.9 million members, or 0.1 percent of its customer base. Hackers used stolen passwords to access nearly 14,000 accounts, allowing them to view personal information, including data from genetically linked relatives. Established in 2006 and headquartered in Mountain View, California, 23andMe shares its location with Google's headquarters. In response, 23andMe is swiftly notifying affected users and enhancing account security, requiring password resets and implementing secondary authentication like mobile codes. The breach, discovered in early October, originated from attackers exploiting reused login details from other compromised websites. Importantly, 23andMe clarified no evidence of an internal breach or data security incident within its systems, emphasizing it wasn't the source of the compromised credentials. Among the affected accounts, 5.5 million had data related to genetic matches, potentially including birth dates and locations. Additionally, 1.4 million breached accounts had limited access to DNA profile information via the "Family Tree" feature. The company is actively addressing the breach, prioritizing user safety and privacy while working to mitigate the impact on affected users.