A database of gene passports is being created in Russia

Keep the trace in the bank
A database of "gene passports" of criminals, military and ordinary citizens is being created in RussiaVladimir Bogdanov, Rossiyskaya Gazeta, 25.11.2008

The State Duma has legalized the introduction of state genomic registration in the country - DNA analysis. The developers of this document from the Ministry of Internal Affairs believe that this will increase "the effectiveness of the fight against crime, including terrorism and extremism."

Identity identification by DNA analysis is successfully used in the UK, USA, Canada and a number of other countries. Russia was one of the last to adopt such a law, although more than a million crimes are committed annually, where the perpetrators are not identified.

The document legalized the mechanism of obtaining, storing and using genomic information for identification. A federal database of DNA information on unidentified corpses, unidentified persons whose biological material was seized during the investigation will be created. It is also important that the database will store the "gene" identification data of convicts and those serving sentences for committing serious and especially serious crimes. It will also include genomic "passports" of maniacs who commit sexual crimes.

Few people will be able to look into this secret base. Such a right will be granted to courts, bodies of inquiry, preliminary investigation and special services operatives.

The new law defines the procedure for obtaining and destroying genomic information after identification. If this has not happened - after 70 years of storage.

Whose gene traces will end up in the bank? Registration will be mandatory for certain categories of citizens. Suspects of committing serious crimes and all those convicted in court should leave their gene traces.

But the developers of the law also provided for the voluntary surrender of their DNA by citizens in cases when people want to insure themselves and their loved ones. This procedure will be paid and not cheap. After all, one sequencer device that extracts DNA from biological samples costs half a million dollars.

Mandatory genetic registration of representatives of dangerous professions, primarily military, is also provided. In the event of an emergency, it will allow you to identify the deceased or seriously injured.

I must say that DNA analysis laboratories are already operating in our country. So far there are only 35 of them. Last year, with their help, more than a thousand crimes were solved, in particular, a number of serious ones in Moscow and Bashkiria.

However, many experts express concern about whether it will be possible to reliably protect the genomic database from prying eyes. After all, criminals, knowing DNA information, can harm a person, provoke a disease, poison him, cause allergies. Knowing the genetic propensity of a person to diseases, you can refuse him insurance or employment.

However, in the forensic center of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the correspondent of "RG" was assured that the information would be protected reliably.

- The law specifies options for protection against unauthorized access, - they said there. - In particular, special closed communication channels are provided, through which all information about the DNA of criminals and ordinary people will be transmitted.

It should also be noted that computer databases, although they make life much easier for investigative authorities, sometimes lead to incorrect results. So, in the UK, which is the ancestor of DNA expertise over the past year, dozens of failures and errors were identified in the genomic database. And it contains information about the DNA of 4.5 million Britons, including about 900 thousand children.

In general, the question of how reliable it is remains. But they haven't come up with anything better yet. And it is necessary to create a genomic database, because there is still more benefit. After all, no one disputes the fact that the detection rate of crimes is sharply increasing. And their prevention can improve. Knowing about such possibilities of expertise, someone, perhaps, will abandon criminal plans. Genetic examination is not a panacea for crime, but another step in the fight against it.

Dossier "RG"In the USA, the DNA Identification Law has been in force since 1994, providing for the collection of genetic materials from criminals and suspects.

• In Germany, in 1998, the law on identification by DNA analysis was adopted, prescribing taking DNA samples from suspects in crimes. The law allowed the criminal police to create genetic databases of criminals, where about 1 million samples are stored.
• In France, the decision to create a file of "genetic fingerprints" of convicts was made in 1998.

Portal "Eternal youth" www.vechnayamolodost.ru25.11.2008