The New York Times reports on the Chinese government's use of public DNA databases and commercial technology to help implement a state of surveillance over the Uighur population of the Xinjiang province. As China moves to collect DNA and biometric data to bolster its surveillance efforts, the report notes that the use of publicly available materials poses a challenge to the scientific community. Scientists affiliated with the project are reported to have utilized equipment from U.S.-made Thermo Fisher and relied on genetic material compiled by Yale University Geneticist Kenneth Kidd. Thermo Fisher has since stated it would cease the sale of its products in Xinjiang, and Kidd stated he was unaware of how his material had been incorporated but added that be believed the scientists were acting within the scientific norms that require informed consent from DNA donors. (Registration may be required to access this story.)
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