Was a recent, unprecedented DNA data theft a racially motivated attack?

October 6th, 2023 - the day before Hamas launches its attack on Israel - a data set stolen from at-home DNA testing company 23andMe is posted on the dark web. A hacker under the username Golem claims it contains millions of data points relating to Ashkenazi Jews living globally. A vast repository of 23andMe account holder's personal information is then offered to anyone willing to pay for it - including names, birth dates, location and genetic ancestry details. Not only is it 23andMe's the biggest ever security breach but apparently it's been motivated by racism.

Jenny Kleeman recently confirmed her Ashkenazi Jewish identity through a 23andMe test. Her mum and dad had already done so a few years previously. In this bonus episode of The Gift, Jenny investigates the 23andMe breach to discover what happened, who was targeted and if information as sensitive as our genetic code can ever be stored safely.

Presenter: Jenny Kleeman Producer: Conor Garrett Commissioning Editor: Hugh Levinson Executive Producer: Philip Sellars Production Co-ordinator: Gill Huggett

In this last episode, as Jenny's own results land in her inbox, she hears how at home DNA tests have brought family secrets - once thought long buried - out into the light.

It's the go-to Christmas present for the person who already has everything. A gift that promises to tell you who you really are and how you're connected to the world. Millions of us have spat into a tube and sent a vial of our DNA to a company like Ancestry and 23andMe. Their tests promise to unlock the truth of our heritage - perhaps even a future foretold in our genes.

Across six episodes, Jenny Kleeman meets the men and women whose lives changed forever after they opened a box that contained a DNA test. Exposing scandals, upending identities, solving mysteries and delivering life-changing news - Jenny investigates what happens when genealogy, technology and identity collide.

Presenter: Jenny Kleeman Producer: Conor Garrett Commissioning Editor: Dan Clarke Executive Producer: Philip Sellars Production Co-ordinator: Gill Huggett

How can life change when a home DNA test reveals you may be predisposed to serious illness?

It's the go-to Christmas present for the person who already has everything. A gift that promises to tell you who you really are and how you're connected to the world.

Millions of us have spat into a tube and sent a vial of our DNA to a company like Ancestry and 23andMe. Their tests promise to unlock the truth of our heritage - perhaps even a future foretold in our genes.

Across six episodes, Jenny Kleeman meets the men and women whose lives changed forever after they opened a box that contained a DNA test. Exposing scandals, upending identities, solving mysteries and delivering life-changing news - Jenny investigates what happens when genealogy, technology and identity collide.

Presenter: Jenny Kleeman Producer: Conor Garrett Commissioning Editor: Dan Clarke Executive Producer: Philip Sellars Production Co-ordinator: Gill Huggett

The anxieties of navigating a newfound racial identity.

It's the go-to Christmas present for the person who already has everything. A gift that promises to tell you who you really are and how you're connected to the world.

Millions of us have spat into a tube and sent a vial of our DNA to a company like Ancestry and 23andMe. Their tests promise to unlock the truth of our heritage - perhaps even a future foretold in our genes.

Across six episodes, Jenny Kleeman meets the men and women whose lives changed forever after they opened a box that contained a DNA test. Exposing scandals, upending identities, solving mysteries and delivering life-changing news - Jenny investigates what happens when genealogy, technology and identity collide.

Presenter: Jenny Kleeman Producer: Conor Garrett Commissioning Editor: Dan Clarke Executive Producer: Philip Sellars Production Co-ordinator: Gill Huggett

The family that must turn detective to find the couple who had IVF at the same time as them.

It's the go-to Christmas present for the person who already has everything. A gift that promises to tell you who you really are and how you're connected to the world.

Millions of us have spat into a tube and sent a vial of our DNA to a company like Ancestry and 23andMe. Their tests promise to unlock the truth of our heritage - perhaps even a future foretold in our genes.

Across six episodes, Jenny Kleeman meets the men and women whose lives changed forever after they opened a box that contained a DNA test. Exposing scandals, upending identities, solving mysteries and delivering life-changing news - Jenny investigates what happens when genealogy, technology and identity collide.

Presenter: Jenny Kleeman Producer: Conor Garrett Commissioning Editor: Dan Clarke Executive Producer: Philip Sellars Production Co-ordinator: Gill Huggett

A son's quest to learn more about his late father unravels a mystery that's baffled US federal law enforcement for over four decades.

It's the go-to Christmas present for the person who already has everything. A gift that promises to tell you who you really are and how you're connected to the world.

Millions of us have spat into a tube and sent a vial of our DNA to a company like Ancestry and 23andMe. Their tests promise to unlock the truth of our heritage - perhaps even a future foretold in our genes.

Across six episodes, Jenny Kleeman meets the men and women whose lives changed forever after they opened a box that contained a DNA test. Exposing scandals, upending identities, solving mysteries and delivering life-changing news - Jenny investigates what happens when genealogy, technology and identity collide.

Presenter: Jenny Kleeman Producer: Conor Garrett Commissioning Editor: Dan Clarke Executive Producer: Philip Sellars Production Co-ordinator: Gill Huggett Archive courtesy CNN

In this first episode, a scandal deep in the heart of London's Harley Street is exposed when a man in his eighties receives a DNA test Christmas present from his daughter.

It's the go-to Christmas present for the person who already has everything. A gift that promises to tell you who you really are and how you're connected to the world.

Millions of us have spat into a tube and sent a vial of our DNA to a company like Ancestry and 23andMe. Their tests promise to unlock the truth of our heritage - perhaps even a future foretold in our genes.

Across six episodes, Jenny Kleeman meets the men and women whose lives changed forever after they opened a box that contained a DNA test. Exposing scandals, upending identities, solving mysteries and delivering life-changing news - Jenny investigates what happens when genealogy, technology and identity collide.

Presenter: Jenny Kleeman Producer: Conor Garrett Commissioning Editor: Dan Clarke Executive Producer: Philip Sellars Production Co-ordinator: Gill Huggett

Have you ever been curious enough to try and find out who you really are?

Jenny Kleeman meets the men and women whose lives changed forever after opening a box containing a DNA test.

A new six-part documentary series from BBC Radio 4, coming to this feed weekly on Mondays from 11 September 2023.