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Comment by liorben-david | Hacker News Reader

Is there a geneology service that does not store your data?

Any kind of storage is a non-starter.

If you mean just DNA analysis I suppose that's possible, but unlikely. Genealogy involves your links to specific other people and thus is impossible without storing data.

Isn’t the whole point of such a service to store your data? To make it possible for others (genetically) related to you, to find you?

signal does some hash-based matching of your contacts without storing your contacts

(but also re 'whole point', not sure about split btwn people who want their own genetic profile vs searching for long-lost twin)

In order to use DNA tests in genealogy, you need to know every segment on every chromosome that matches. Matching is not a go/nogo proposition. There are degrees of matching that depend on the biological relationship. Ex: Parent/children average 3,700 cM (centiMorgans), siblings are 2,600 cM, first cousins 900 cM etc.

See: https://whoareyoumadeof.com/blog/need-a-dna-centimorgan-char...

You can do holomorphic encryption.

The DNA date needs to be readable by third-party apps, if the user so wishes.

Yes, and that can be done with homomorphic encryption? I don't understand your objection.

Data

What kind of genealogy service could you provide if you did not store users' data?

This has to arrive in the next ten years or so, off the cloud - test at home.

The whole point of DNA testing in genealogy is to quantify your connections with other people. So an isolated home test would be of no benefit.

Surely that's not the whole point. Genealogy is not the only use case for genetic testing. Health information is another pretty major niche. Curiosity is the third contender. And there's probably more.

every saas should have a byo storage option

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