In the years that I have offered support to DNA Paternity Test clients I have given out hundreds of results.  The reaction to the results can be anywhere on a wide spectrum of emotion.

I have heard cries of joy, eruptions of anger, and absolute silence to both possible results.  People constantly surprise me in their reactions. In these times I work to be as sensitive as possible to how impactful the next words out of my mouth will be for the customer.

At IDENTIGENE we are working to make this process as streamlined, accurate, and reliable as possible.  A long with the science side of things our client support team is always striving to be knowledgeable, understanding, and sensitive.  We hear many people’s stories of what brought them to this moment and where they may go from here.

We are now sponsoring a new website to provide a space for people to share stories of ALL kinds.  We have posted many stories so far of individuals who have dealt with the worries of adoption, those searching for their fathers through impossible odds, and many others.  We would like our customers to feel free to share their stories of DNA testing and how these moments have impacted their lives.

You can find this website at:  www.MyStoryRelated.com.  I hope that you enjoy the stories told there, and that maybe a few of you feel inspired to share a story of your own.

Over the years as I have worked as a Customer Support Rep for Identigene, I have met many people and talked to them about their different situations and stories. Each person’s circumstances involving paternity testing and finding who they are related to are different and each person has their own story to tell. For a long time I have wanted to help people to share their stories with others who may be going through a similar situation. And now with our new blog, www.mystoryrelated.com, people will have that chance.

www.mystoryrelated.com is a collection of stories of people finding the connections and relationships that make up the story of who they are. Whether its a story about finding ones biological father, finding the birth mother that gave you up for adoption, or connecting with ancestors that came before, mystoryrelated allows people to read and share the stories that are a big part of their life.

Please take a moment and visit www.mystoryrelated.com and look through some of the stories. Each one is unique and each week we will post a new story.

If you are interested in sharing your story, please do. I am sure there are other like you who would love to read your story. Click Here if you are interested in sharing your story with the readers of our blog.

At IDENTIGENE we take our customers’ privacy very seriously.  To some people it may seem that we may do this to the point of excess.  Most people do not require many aspects of our protection.  But the problem is we cannot pick and choose who needs a case password or who we can speak to based on one participant’s word over the phone or via email.  There have been many cases where someone, whether a participant or no, wanted information that was not theirs to ask for.

An recent example of what I am speaking of.   I answer all email sent through our online form.  I received an email from a gentleman who wanted more information about the status of his case.  I advised him I would have to first verify his case password.  He replied with his password.  However, when the reply came the header showed a different name, and this name was not listed on the case as a participant.

Our policies state that we cannot give any case information to anyone not listed on the case.  Because, I could not truly verify this gentleman’s identity I was not able to provide him with any case information.  I advised him that he is more than welcome to contact our client support group for more information.  Looking at this from his perspective I can see how this may be frustrating and inconvenient.

However, it is my job to look at this from all perspectives.  While the individual emailing could provide the password I could not verify that they had the right to any information pertaining to this case.  The biological mother in this case, who was tested, has the right to have her and her child’s privacy protected.

My concern in this particular case was that the alleged father’s significant other had located the password and thought that by emailing I would give her case info or even results.  So, for those who would like to email for case status.  Please be advised that if you want information about your case you will need to use your own email address and not that of a friend or significant other.

I hope that everyone reading this can understand our perspective.  Paternity Tests and the results that are produced from them are senstive to those being tested.  We must do everything we can to protect every person in these cases even if they do not want our protection.  I apologize if it makes anything inconvenient for anyone being tested, but to me it beats the alternative.

I have been writing this blog since early September, and I hope that everyone is finding it useful.  Everyday, I try to think of a new topic.  Today I wanted to ask for help from my readers.  What do you want to read about?

Is there something I haven’t addressed in my past blogs that you would like to read about?  When you think of DNA Testing what questions plague you?  Is there something you are reading about in the news you would like more information on from an expert?  Is there  I consult with my fellow client support representatives on a regular basis about what customers are asking about.  I have addressed these concerns and now want to hear from those utilizing this blog.

Help me decide the direction of this DNA Testing blog will take to best assist you.  So, you can either post your ideas to the comments portion of this blog or you can email me at kstyer@identigene.com.  Thank you in advance for your help to improve this resource.

Happy Friday everyone.  I received an email from a fellow client support representative this morning.  She told me that a lot of customers are asking about the online system and how they can use it to view their DNA Test results.  So, I thought I would throw a note up about this system.

When you are filling out your order form that you receive with your DNA Testing Kit, a portion will ask how you would like to receive your results.  One option to receive results is online.  Here you will enter a username and password.  We recommend using your email address as this username and you can choose ANY password.  I recommend writing this information down so that you do not misplace it as it will require additional paperwork to make changes.

After your samples arrive this log in information can be used to check the status of your testing and view your results.  On DNATesting.com there is a results login link on the top right hand corner of the page.  This will take you to the log in screen.  Remember your password is case sensitive so enter it exactly as you wrote it on the order form.

I hope this will help a few people make the online system a little easier.  Have a great weekend everyone.  As always you can contact me directly if you have questions about IDENTIGENE, DNA, or Paternity Testing.  KStyer@identigene.com or 801-462-1465.

Other than DNA testing for relationships IDENTIGENE offers one type of testing for Ancestry searches.  This test is called Ancestry by DNA 2.5.  It is a popular test for people who are just trying to get an idea of what regions of the world their ancestors may have come from.

Ancestry by DNA 2.5 will give you a percentage breakdown of your DNA into four different population groups.  These groups are Native American, European, East Asian, and Sub-Saharan African.  It is not able to break down the percentages much further.  For example, it cannot tell you which tribe your Native American percentage may have come from.  Also, it is a total picture of your DNA and cannot tell you which side of the family a given percentage may have come from. There is more information on our website about this type of test on our website at: http://www.dnatesting.com/dna-ancestry-services/ancestry-by-dna.php

There is one upgrade option to this test.  This is called the Euro DNA 1.0.  This test is only available after the Ancestry by DNA results are returned and show that you have at least 50% European, less than 40% East Asian, and less than 15% of either Native American and Sub-Saharan African.   This additional testing will reflect the following sub percentages of Northern European, Mediterranean, Middle Easter, and South Asian.  You can find more information on this type of testing on our website at: http://www.dnatesting.com/dna-ancestry-services/dna-test-euro.php.

Many people find these tests interesting and understand it is mostly for informational purposes.  Some people take this type of testing in an attempt to confirm certain types of heritage to join organizations.  Please understand that these results may not be accepted by these groups.  You must check with them.  Unfortunately, our client support group is not aware of which organizations may or may not accept these results.

I had this test done a few years ago and was I found that while I am 90% European (not a shocker when you see my pale skin, blue eyes, and blonde hair) and 10% Native American.  This part was a large surprise for me and for my father as he has been doing our family’s genealogy for years and has no records of where this could have come from.

So, the results of this type of testing can be interesting and maybe answer a couple of questions you have about your ancestry.