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23andMe

Health & Fitness

Source-backed from the published policy documents behind this report

This report covers the 23andMe Privacy Statement, which applies to the websites of 23andMe, Inc., including www.23andme.com, and to the 23andMe mobile app and related services, and its US Privacy Notice, including the Washington Consumer Health Data Privacy Policy that notice carries; what the US Privacy Notice says applies to residents of the states it names. It does not cover the separate Medical Record Privacy Notice for telehealth services or the privacy notices for other regions, which were not reviewed for this report.

103
reviewed findings
15
key findings
3
free to read here
18
verified controls

4 of them depend on where you live.

Privacy Snapshot

What the published policy covers, and how much we found under each. Tap one to read it.

  • Camera & Photos 1 finding
  • Microphone & Audio 1 finding
  • Biometrics 2 findings
  • Sensitive Data 8 findings
  • Tracking 3 findings
  • Advertising & Profiling 12 findings
  • Sharing 15 findings
  • Controls & Permissions 55 findings
  • Other 6 findings

3 findings, in full

The first 3 of this report’s 15 key findings, complete — claim, reasoning, and the policy’s own wording.

Advertising & Profiling Privacy control available If you opt in, 23andMe uses your sensitive data categories for custom recommendations and offers

What this means

23andMe says that if you opt in to Personalized Recommendations, it uses your sensitive data categories to give you custom health and wellness recommendations, offers and other information.

If you opt in to Personalized Recommendations, 23andMe uses your sensitive data categories to give you custom health and wellness recommendations, offers and other information.

Why this matters

Opting in turns your sensitive data categories into the basis for offers sent to you.

What the policy says

Opt-in: Yes, I want to receive Personalized Recommendations to receive custom health and wellness recommendations, offers, and other information based on my sensitive data categories. Learn more about Personalized Recommendations .

From 23andMe Privacy Statement

Source captured on

What you can do

A verified privacy control can reduce this.

Plainlyst Premium shows where to find it, what it changes, what it doesn’t change, and what may stop working.

View in Privacy Tune-Up
Sensitive Data 23andMe collects the health, disease, ethnicity and family history details you report

What this means

23andMe says it collects information you report yourself, including your gender, disease conditions, health-related information, traits, ethnicity and family history.

23andMe collects information you report yourself, including your gender, disease conditions, health-related information, traits, ethnicity and family history.

Why this matters

Beyond your DNA, the answers you give about your health and family become part of what 23andMe holds.

What the policy says

Self-Reported Information: information you provide to 23andMe including your gender, disease conditions, health-related information, traits, ethnicity, family history, or anything else you provide to us within our Service(s).

From 23andMe Privacy Statement

Source captured on

What you can do

A privacy control may reduce part of this practice.

Plainlyst Premium shows where to find it, what it changes, what it doesn’t change, and what may stop working.

View in Privacy Tune-Up
Tracking 23andMe lets advertising providers collect identifiers, activity and location data on its sites and apps

What this means

23andMe says it lets advertising providers collect identifiers such as IP addresses, cookie IDs and mobile IDs, activity data, device data and geolocation data through its sites and apps when you use its online service.

23andMe says it lets advertising providers collect identifiers (IP addresses, cookie IDs and mobile IDs), activity data (browsing, clicks, app usage), device data and geolocation data through its sites and apps when you use its online service.

Why this matters

Using 23andMe's website or app can feed data to outside advertising companies, separate from your genetic results.

What the policy says

We let advertising providers collect identifiers (IP addresses, cookie IDs, and mobile IDs), activity data (browsing, clicks, app usage), device data, and geolocation data through our sites and apps when you use our online service. In the past 12 months, these categories of personal information may have been “sold” or “shared” as defined under CCPA.

From 23andMe US Privacy Notice

Source captured on

What you can do

A privacy control may reduce part of this practice.

Plainlyst Premium shows where to find it, what it changes, what it doesn’t change, and what may stop working.

View in Privacy Tune-Up

12 more key findings a free account opens, by topic

  • Controls & Permissions 4
  • Advertising & Profiling 2
  • Biometrics 2
  • Sharing 2
  • Other 1
  • Sensitive Data 1

Create a free account to read all 15

And every key finding for every company you use, with your companies saved and a dashboard of what is worth seeing across them, plus your Privacy Tune-Up. An email and a password — no card.

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Unlock the complete 23andMe report

A free account opens all 15 key findings. 88 additional reviewed findings are available in the complete report.

  • Camera & Photos 1 more
  • Microphone & Audio 1 more
  • Sensitive Data 6 more
  • Tracking 2 more
  • Advertising & Profiling 9 more
  • Sharing 13 more
  • Controls & Permissions 51 more
  • Other 5 more

  • Complete report

    88 additional reviewed findings, each shown with the policy wording behind it, like the 15 above.

  • Privacy Tune-Up

    18 verified privacy controls, 9 of them high-impact — where each one is, what it changes, and what may stop working.

  • Stay protectedPlanned

    Told when the policy changes.

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Plainlyst simplifies selected disclosures from privacy policies. It does not claim to capture every statement or practice in a policy, and it is not legal advice.

Plainlyst

Operated by JC RESERVE LLC

james@plainlysthq.com

Official sources only. Every finding quotes the company’s own policy, and every record names the document behind it. We do not grade anybody.