Judge approves US$46.75M payout for 23andMe data breach victims

A 23andMe saliva collection kit is shown in Oakland, Calif., on March 25, 2025. (Barbara Ortutay / AP Photo)

A U.S. bankruptcy judge on Tuesday approved a US$46.75 million settlement for victims of a 2023 data breach at the genetic testing company 23andMe, which exposed genetic and other personal information of an estimated 6.9 million customers.

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Brian Walsh in St. Louis said the settlement was fair and equitable, and in the best interest of a trust overseen by the company’s bankruptcy administrator.

The settlement will be reduced by $14.29 million previously disbursed in connection with the breach, making the total additional payout $32.46 million.

• Based in Palo Alto, California, 23andMe filed for protection from creditors in March 2025.
• It cited the data breach, related litigation, and both increased competition and falling demand for genetic testing products as reasons for its Chapter 11 filing.
• Last July, TTAM Research Institute, a nonprofit controlled by 23andMe co-founder Anne Wojcicki, bought 23andMe’s assets for $305 million.
• California Attorney General Rob Bonta is also suing over the breach, accusing 23andMe of ignoring warnings that its systems were compromised and downplaying the breach’s severity.
• Bonta is seeking potentially millions of dollars in civil fines against Chrome Holding Co, the legal name of 23andMe, in San Francisco Superior Court.
• Walsh has yet to rule on the bankruptcy administrator’s motion to block California’s lawsuit.
• In a June 6 filing, Bonta said the U.S. Congress did not give bankruptcy judges power to deprive state courts of jurisdiction over state law-based enforcement actions, and allow bankruptcy courts to become “a haven for wrongdoers.”
• Bonta’s office did not immediately respond to requests for additional comment.

(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York, Editing by Franklin Paul and Nia Williams)

Jonathan Stempel, Reuters