On Australian News Program, Professor Bala Discusses Genealogy Test Pitfalls

Professor Nila Bala appeared on the Oct. 18 episode of the Australian news program 7 News Spotlight. The episode explored what it deemed “the hidden dangers of DNA testing.”

In interviews shot in King Hall, Bala spoke about the impact of authorities using genetic genealogy to find offenders like convicted Golden State Killer Joseph DeAngelo and how uploading DNA to a public databases exposes all your relatives along with you. She urged viewers to be wary of DNA databases.

Watch the episode here. (The first part of Bala’s interview begins around the seven-minute mark).

Nila Bala is a scholar of children’s rights, criminal law, and evidence. Her work examines how law structures childhood, particularly through criminal law, emerging technologies, and systems of surveillance and punishment. At King Hall, she teaches Criminal Law, Evidence, and Children and the Law.