Abstract
Recent advances in DNA technologies have made it possible to establish DNA databases for forensic investigations. Forensic DNA databases are currently in operation in about 70 countries. As expected with the tremendous success of the use of forensic DNA databases, many ethical and legal problems arise in the preparation of a DNA database, and these problems are particularly significant when one analyses the legal regulations on the subject. The continuous rise in the size of forensic DNA data sets poses concerns about the requirements for inclusion and preservation and suspicions about the efficacy, affordability, and privacy violation of such vast repositories of personal data. In light of its broad reach, the database raised concerns about anonymity, government surveillance, and human rights. The aim of this chapter is to shed light on the current status of forensic DNA databases and their ethical and legal issues.
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Kumar, S., Babu, S.R., Rohatgi, S. (2021). Current Status of DNA Databases in the Forensic Field. In: Dash, H.R., Shrivastava, P., Lorente, J.A. (eds) Handbook of DNA Profiling. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-9364-2_48-1
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