Ancestry: Family History & DNA

"We share information as described in our Privacy Statements, such as with our affiliated companies, other users, our service providers, our advertising partners, and in other limited scenarios, such as in response to valid legal process or as appropriate to protect the rights, property, safety, confidentiality, or reputation of Ancestry, our affiliates, and our users."

Ancestry shares personal information with a broad range of third parties including affiliated companies, service providers, and advertising partners, with vague catch-all justifications like protecting "reputation."

"If you agreed to the Informed Consent to participate in research, and then withdraw consent, we will stop using information about you for the Research Project and any future research. However, information cannot be withdrawn from studies in progress, completed studies, or published results."

Even after a user deletes their DNA results or withdraws consent, Ancestry retains their data in any ongoing or completed research studies indefinitely, with no clear timeline for deletion of research data.

"We may deliver "targeted" or "interest-based" advertising on our websites and elsewhere on the internet, based on your interests and activities on the internet. Ancestry may market to you online, via email, or through other methods, with new products and offers from us or our business partners. This includes advertising personalized to your interests."

Ancestry tracks user interests and internet activities to deliver personalized ads both on their own sites and across the broader internet, indicating cross-service tracking of user behavior.

"We also collect some information about users who visit our websites using cookies and similar technologies. See the Privacy Statement and/or Cookie Policy for the particular website(s) or service(s) you are using for more details about the specific types of information Ancestry may collect and your choices related to that data."

Ancestry collects unspecified data via cookies and similar tracking technologies from all website visitors, with details deferred to separate policies rather than clearly disclosed upfront.

"If you have given your consent to participate in ongoing research efforts and you delete your DNA results, your consent will be withdrawn and your information will not be used in future research. Please note, however, that information cannot be withdrawn from studies in progress, completed studies, or published results."

While Ancestry allows DNA test deletion, user data persists in any ongoing or completed research studies, meaning deletion does not fully remove a user's genetic information from Ancestry's systems.