The hoopla surrounding our lack of privacy in the digital age is about to reach an all-time high. While the Internet has increasingly provided authorities with ways to rob us of our privacy, mainly in the form of online spying, soon there may be a way to steal information on our genetic make-up.
An article from The Escapist by Josh Engen was recently brought to my attention, and to my shock and horror it states that DNA Diagnostic Center Inc. is engineering a new videogame experience — one that will allow us to essentially put ourselves into a videogame. The technology, titled “Helix Profile,” will use genetic testing to analyze the user’s DNA. “Once a genetic profile has been created,” the article reads, “the data could then be imported into a videogame.”
Sure, some people may find this rather exciting. In fact, just this afternoon a friend of mine immediately stated “wow, that’s actually pretty awesome,” upon hearing the news.
Submission of our DNA will allow people access to our physical, unadulterated selves.
“Awesome?” I replied. “Are you joking?” In a time when infringed privacy runs around us like angry chickens? Think of the ethical problems this could cause.
Privacy is a hot topic these days. After the NSA revelations were released, the stir that resulted sent shockwaves across the globe. It’s clear that our personal information is an easy swipe for almost any company on the net. It’s also clear that they provide an inviting entryway for authorities to walk in and steal our data from us without our knowledge.
The Internet is increasingly finding ways to take our personal information and use it to spy on and manipulate us. But this thievery has only been of our outward actions: text messages sent, pictures taken, personal information that has been created by moving fingers. While still a violation of our digital rights, this privacy breach is only of actions we have the power to manipulate.
DNA is something that we can’t manipulate. DNA is solid, concrete, a part of us. The Internet believes it can get to know us through what we do online, but these actions may or may not be who we actually are. Submission of our DNA will allow people access to our physical, unadulterated selves. It is the ultimate in privacy invasion.
I cringe to think of the unethical things that could occur should this information fall into corporate or even government hands. Words such as “fraud,” “identity theft,” and even “cloning” come to mind. If the wrong person had this information, they would have access to all of our medical records. Wrongful impersonation would reach a new high.
The sad thing is, no matter how unethical a technology may be, it will always be expanded upon and developed for use, even in private. And when the government is involved, the concepts of ethics and morals seem to go awry; they blur unapologetically with the the concept of power.
Sure, DNA Diagnostics Centre Inc. can claim that genetic testing is for entertainment purposes, but half of us know that it could, and probably will, be used elsewhere. Sadly, the other half will fall into the capitalist trap, responding to it with, “Whoa, this is really cool!”
Put simply, there are some technologies that should not be produced or further developed. Those who wish to explore this technology must stop and realize that our DNA belongs solely in a medical facility and not in the capitalist market. I, for one, will not allow my DNA to float about the web.
