Maine Irish historian Matthew Jude Barker, of Portland, said he took a genetic test 14 years ago through 23andMe. The company filed for bankruptcy this week, prompting concerns about what will happen to customer data. “I’m not going to do anything right now,” Barker said. “I’m not too worried about it.” Daryn Slover/Portland Press Herald

Matthew Jude Barker is one of many Mainers who are trying to figure out what to do with their DNA data since 23andMe filed for bankruptcy this week.

An author and expert on Maine’s Irish history and a genealogist at the Maine Irish Heritage Center, the Portland resident has used a few genetic-testing companies to ferret out some of the mysteries in his own family tree.

“I wanted to cover all the bases,” Barker said. “I know a whole bunch of people who used 23andMe, including my dad and other family members.”

But Barker wasn’t sure how he would respond Wednesday when Maine Attorney General Aaron Frey issued a consumer alert urging 23andMe customers to delete their DNA material and other personal data through the company’s website.

The company has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and its co-founder and CEO has resigned while 23andMe continues its push to cut costs, reduce its real estate footprint and seek new ownership.

“DNA is arguably an individual’s most sensitive data,” Frey said in an emailed statement. “23andMe has made assurances regarding their data privacy practices, but I would urge consumers to consider deleting their genetic data while the company is facing this instability.”

Frey said his office will be following the bankruptcy closely to ensure 23andMe honors its data privacy commitments.

Frey provided steps to remove personal data, DNA test samples and previous approvals to allow genetic research from the 23andMe website.

Barker, author of “The Irish of Portland, Maine: A History of Forest City Hibernians,” said he was a bit worried that his data could be shared with insurance companies, especially since 23andMe provides information about genetic health markers.

He’s even more concerned because of the recent increased vulnerability of personal records at the federal level, he said. He planned to confer with colleagues at the Maine Irish Heritage Center before taking action with his 23andMe account.

“At this point, I’m going to wait and see,” Barker said. “I have some concerns, but I need to find out more about it.”

Based in San Francisco, 23andMe announced Sunday that it would look to sell “substantially all of its assets” through a court-approved reorganization plan, The Associated Press reported.

Founded in 2006 with a promise to revolutionize genetics and health care, 23andMe became known for its saliva-based DNA testing kits — purchased by millions of customers eager to learn more about their ancestry — and later dove further into health research and drug development.

The company said its bankruptcy filing won’t change the way it stores or protects data. Board Chair Mark Jensen said it is “committed to continuing to safeguard customer data” and that data privacy will be “an important consideration” in any future sale.

Still, many Mainers who have used 23andMe are concerned.

“Several of my family members have used it and they’re scrambling now to remove their data,” said Eric Brown, executive director of the Maine Irish Heritage Center.

But Brown said his brother isn’t worried and even joked about it. “He said, ‘Fine, clone me. The world would be a better place.'”

John Bringardner of Debtwire told the AP that any new owner of 23andMe will have to comply with regulatory approvals that would ensure “customer data won’t end up in unscrupulous hands.”

But some risk will remain even with new ownership, Bringardner said.

“Personal data collected by 23andMe has always been at risk,” he said, noting a 2023 online breach that compromised ancestral information for nearly 7 million 23andMe customers.

Litigation resulting from that breach contributed to the current bankruptcy filing.

Last year, 23andMe agreed to pay $30 million in cash to settle a class-action lawsuit accusing the company of failing to protect customers whose personal information was exposed in the breach. On Sunday, the company said that it plans to use bankruptcy proceedings to “resolve all outstanding legal liabilities” stemming from the October 2023 incident.

Anne Wojcicki, who co-founded 23andMe nearly two decades ago, has stepped down as CEO but remains on the 23andMe board. Her resignation followed a board committee’s rejection of an acquisition proposal from Wojcicki, who wanted to take the company private.

Wojcicki has said that she intends to still bid on 23andMe as the company pursues a sale through the bankruptcy process, and that she resigned as CEO to be “in the best position” as an independent bidder.

23andMe has faced an uncertain future for some time. Beyond battles to go private, the company struggled to find a profitable business model since going public in 2021. The company announced in November that it would lay off 40% of its workforce, or more than 200 employees, and discontinue its therapeutics division.

Sunday’s Chapter 11 filing from 23andMe reported total debts of more than $214.7 million as of the end of last year. Assets, meanwhile, amounted to over $277.4 million. Shares of 23andMe Holding Co. have shed nearly all their value since last spring — and have plunged even further in recent days, trading at less than $1 as of midday Monday.

Frey’s warning followed similar ones from state attorneys general in California and New York that alerted 23andMe customers to their legal rights under state law and called on them to consider deleting and destroying any genetic data held by the company.