This analysis describes what Ancestry's agreement states, permits, or reserves. It does not constitute a legal determination about enforceability. Regulatory applicability and practical outcomes may vary by jurisdiction, enforcement context, and individual circumstances. Read our methodology
The clause addresses use of potentially biometric data, conditioning it on consent and limiting retention by stating the representations are not stored.
Interpretive note: The excerpt notes the representations 'may constitute biometric information'; this characterisation was omitted from the canonical claim as it is a secondary qualifier rather than the primary legal proposition.
The updated Privacy Statement no longer displays a dedicated 'Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information' link in the footer, which was previously accessible to California residents under CCPA requirements. This link allowed users to exercise data-sharing opt-out rights. The footer now lists 'Consumer Health Privacy' as a separate item but does not explicitly direct users to their CCPA controls. California residents may need to locate their opt-out rights through alternative navigation paths on the Ancestry site.
View change record →The updated privacy policy removes the 'Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information' link from the footer navigation. This link previously provided direct access to Ancestry's data-sharing opt-out mechanism, which is a required disclosure under California's CCPA. While the removal does not eliminate the opt-out right itself, it may make the opt-out control less easily discoverable from the privacy policy page. Affected users may need to locate the opt-out mechanism through alternate navigation or search methods.
View change record →The updated Privacy Statement clarifies what uses of Ancestry services are permitted and prohibited, establishes that photo face-grouping in your gallery requires your express consent, and introduces SMS messaging as a communication channel for future opt-in communications. The statement now covers Ancestry, AncestryDNA, and Related Brands under a unified framework while noting that other services operated by the company use separate privacy statements. The removal of 'uploaded DNA data' from the account creation section reflects a narrowing of that specific provision's scope, though genetic information processing remains described elsewhere in the policy. You can review the full updated statement to understand how your personal information will be processed and manage your communication preferences when SMS opt-ins become available.
View change record →If you consent, Ancestry may process your photos through face-grouping that creates numerical representations, which Ancestry states it does not retain or store.
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"With your consent, to help you organize your photos, we may create an abstract numerical representation of images to group similar faces within your gallery. Ancestry does not retain or store these representations, which may constitute biometric information...Excerpt from Ancestry's Privacy Statement
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The clause addresses use of potentially biometric data, conditioning it on consent and limiting retention by stating the representations are not stored.
If you consent, Ancestry may process your photos through face-grouping that creates numerical representations, which Ancestry states it does not retain or store.
ConductAtlas has identified this type of provision across 217 platforms. See the full comparison.
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