California Attorney General Rob Bonta has filed a lawsuit against genetic testing company 23andMe, alleging that the firm failed to adequately protect customer data and ignored warning signs before a major data breach exposed sensitive personal information. The complaint, filed in San Francisco Superior Court, claims the breach compromised the genetic, health, ancestry, and family-related data of approximately 6.9 million U.S. customers, including around 856,000 Californians.
According to the lawsuit, the breach began in April 2023 and continued for nearly five months. California authorities accuse 23andMe of downplaying the seriousness of the incident despite indications that its systems had been compromised. Attorney General Bonta described the company’s response as “entirely unacceptable” and is seeking civil penalties that could amount to millions of dollars under California’s Genetic Information Privacy Act and consumer protection laws.
The legal action comes amid ongoing fallout from the breach and follows 23andMe’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing in March 2025. Earlier this year, a federal court approved a settlement fund of between $30 million and $50 million to resolve most customer claims related to the incident. California continues to challenge the sale of the company’s assets to TTAM Research Institute, arguing that consumers should have the right to consent before their sensitive genetic data is transferred to a new owner.
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