Can DNA get onto something without touching it?

Yes.

DNA can be transferred to an item or surface without direct contact.

Biological material can move between people and objects through indirect pathways. This may occur when DNA is transferred via another person, through clothing, through shared surfaces, or through handling of items after the original deposition.

For example, DNA deposited on a person’s hands may be transferred to another object they later handle. DNA can also be passed from one person to another and then onto a third surface, a process known as secondary or tertiary transfer.

Because of this, DNA may be detected on an item even where the person identified as the contributor never directly touched it.

Laboratory testing can identify DNA and sometimes link it to an individual, but it cannot determine whether the transfer was direct or indirect, when the material was deposited, or what sequence of events led to its presence.