23andMe: Fancy Dancing at the Security Breach Ball
December 11, 2023
This essay is the work of a dumb dinobaby. No smart software required.
Here’s a story I found amusing. Very Sillycon Valley. Very high school science clubby. Navigate to “23andMe Moves to Thwart Class-Action Lawsuits by Quietly Updating Terms.” The main point of the write up is that the firm’s security was breached. How? Probably those stupid customers or a cyber security vendor installing smart software that did not work.
How some influential wizards work to deflect actions hostile to their interests. In the cartoon, the Big Dog tells a young professional, “Just change the words.” Logical, right? Thanks, MSFT Copilot. Close enough for horseshoes.
The article reports:
Following a hack that potentially ensnared 6.9 million of its users, 23andMe has updated its terms of service to make it more difficult for you to take the DNA testing kit company to court, and you only have 30 days to opt out.
I have spit in a 23andMe tube. I’m good at least for this most recent example of hard-to-imagine security missteps. The article cites other publications but drives home what I think is a useful insight into the thought process of big-time Sillycon Valley firms:
customers were informed via email that “important updates were made to the Dispute Resolution and Arbitration section” on Nov. 30 “to include procedures that will encourage a prompt resolution of any disputes and to streamline arbitration proceedings where multiple similar claims are filed.” Customers have 30 days to let the site know if they disagree with the terms. If they don’t reach out via email to opt out, the company will consider their silence an agreement to the new terms.
No more neutral arbitrators, please. To make the firm’s intentions easier to understand, the cited article concludes:
The new TOS specifically calls out class-action lawsuits as prohibited. “To the fullest extent allowed by applicable law, you and we agree that each party may bring disputes against the only party only in an individual capacity, and not as a class action or collective action or class arbitration” …
I like this move for three reasons:
- It provides another example of the tactics certain Information Highway contractors view the Rules of the Road. In a word, “flexible.” In another word, “malleable.”
- The maneuver is one that seems to be — how shall I phrase it — elephantine, not dainty and subtle.
- The “fix” for the problem is to make the estimable company less likely to get hit with massive claims in a court. Courts, obviously, are not to be trusted in some situations.
I find the entire maneuver chuckle invoking. Am I surprised at the move? Nah. You can’t kid this dinobaby.
Stephen E Arnold, December 11, 2023
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