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The New Jersey Drone Panic
This week Jason, as both a drones and aliens reporter, tells us what is most likely happening with the mysterious drones flying over New Jersey. After the break, Joseph explains how cops in Serbia are using Cellebrite phone unlocking tech as a doorway to installing malware on activists' and journalists' phones. In the subscribers-only section, Sam tells us all about an amazing art project using traffic cameras in New York City. YouTube version: https://youtu.be/T_JVUHbAzf4 WTF Is Going on With the New Jersey Mystery Drones? Maybe Mass Panic Over Nothing The No-Win 'Mystery Drone' Clusterfuck Cellebrite Unlocked This Journalist’s Phone. Cops Then Infected it With Malware Traffic Camera 'Selfie' Creator Holds Cease and Desist Letter in Front of Traffic Cam Subscribe at 404media.co. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
Hezbollah's Exploding Pagers
We chime in on the developing story coming out of Lebanon about a wave of exploding pagers. Jason has some unusual expertise that is pretty relevant here. After the break, Jason breaks down why Larry Ellison's AI-powered surveillance dystopia is already here. In the subscribers-only section, Emanuel explains how he figured out what is, and is not, happening with Snapchat's future AI selfie ads. Experts: Lebanon Pager Explosions Likely Not Lithium Batteries Alone Larry Ellison's AI-Powered Surveillance Dystopia Is Already Here Snapchat Reserves the Right to Use AI-Generated Images of Your Face in Ads Subscribe at 404media.co for bonus content. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
Google Street View's Unmappable City
There's only one city in America that isn't on Google's Street View. Documentary filmmaker Chris Parr set out to map it, using North Oak, Minnesota's byzantine rules and the help of a drone. His experience shows who gets privacy in America, and who doesn't. 'I Mapped Google’s ONLY SECRET CITY' YouTube Version: https://youtu.be/3iGvHBr0mJw Subscribe at 404media.co for bonus content. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
Why We Cover AI the Way We Do
This is a re-upload that was previously only for paying subscribers! It gives a lot more context on the how and why we cover AI they way we do. Subscribe at 404media.co for more bonus content like this. Here's the original description of the episode: We got a lot of, let's say, feedback, with some of our recent stories on artificial intelligence. One was about people using Bing's AI to create images of cartoon characters flying a plane into a pair of skyscrapers. Another was about 4chan using the same tech to quickly generate racist images. Here, we use that dialogue as a springboard to chat about why we cover AI the way we do, the purpose of journalism, and how that relates to AI and tech overall. This was fun, and let us know what you think. Definitely happy to do more of these sorts of discussions for our subscribers in the future. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
How Apple is Locking Out Cops
This week Joseph starts with his scoop on how Apple quietly introduced code that reboots iPhones, locking out cops. After the break, we all talk about the big Blue Sky migration. In the subscribers-only section, we talk about how we plan to cover, and what to cover, in the new U.S. administration. YouTube version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZNRjqqe29iE Apple Quietly Introduced iPhone Reboot Code Which is Locking Out Cops The Big Blue Sky Migration Why the Work Still Matters Subscribe at 404media.co for bonus content. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
The Screen Time Panic Sets Parents Up to Fail
Patrick Klepek on the reality of parenting in the age of Roblox and YouTube. I listened to hours of podcasts about how screen time affects kids of all ages and how parents should manage screen time but I still felt completely unprepared for this challenge when I had a kid. I think the reason for that is that there’s a lot of reporting about how screens are impacting kids, and a lot of reporting about the research into this subject, but rarely did I encounter a conversation between parents that talks about how any of that information can be realistically applied in the real world. This week on the podcast we’re joined by Patrick Klepek in order to have the kind of conversation I wish I heard before I became a parent, but I think there’s something here for everyone. Patrick is the cofounder of Remap, a website and one of my favorite podcasts about video games, and the writer behind Crossplay, a newsletter about the intersection of parenting and games. Patrick is also my former colleague at Vice, back when I worked at Motherboard and he at Waypoint. Patrick has been reporting about video games for most of his life, is a wonderful writer, and a parent. I find his perspective on many of these issues—screen time, parental controls, YouTube, Roblox—extremely useful and interesting, and I hope you do as well. YouTube Version: https://youtu.be/LjK1Swsm1m4 Listen to the weekly podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or YouTube. Become a paid subscriber for early access to these interview episodes and to power our journalism. If you become a paid subscriber, check your inbox for an email from our podcast host Transistor for a link to the subscribers-only version! You can also add that subscribers feed to your podcast app of choice and never miss an episode that way. The email should also contain the subscribers-only unlisted YouTube link for the extended video version too. It will also be in the show notes in your podcast player. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
What It’s Like to Be a Data Labeler Training AI
I recently traveled to Kenya for a journalism and AI conference. While I was there, I really wanted to meet with Michael Geoffrey Asia, the secretary general of the Data Labelers Association. Data Labeling is a huge job in Kenya. Data labelers are the people who train AI, and who also work on ensuring the outputs are accurate. In some cases, data labelers are themselves pretending to be AI, in order to train AI. Often, data labelers don’t know exactly what they’re working on, because the work usually goes through a platform, a subcontractor, or a combination of both. So basically they can be presented with a backend where they’re asked to perform tasks or answer questions; in some cases their answers may be presented in real time as AI. Data labeling is notoriously brutal and underpaid work. Workers sometimes earn as little as a few dollars a day, work under algorithmic management, and, because they’re sometimes trying to train AI what not to do or show, they are often shown graphic, violent, or sexual content for hours at a time. It’s kind of similar to content moderation jobs, and lots of people do both data labeling and content moderation, or switch back and forth between the industries. It’s such a big thing in Kenya that I mentioned it to the driver who took me to meet Michael for this interview, and she told me that she too was a data labeler, as are many of her friends. Michael has since become critical at the Data Labelers Association, a group that is fighting to organize people who do data labeling work and who is advocating for better working conditions, higher pay, and more protections for data labelers. I met Michael at a coworking space in Nairobi in a very tiny room, so I’m not on camera after this, but here’s my conversation with Michael. The Emotional Labor Behind AI Intimacy by Michael Geoffrey Asia YouTube Version: https://youtu.be/QH654YPxvEE Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
The End of Windows 10 Support Is an Environmental Disaster (With Nathan Proctor)
Jason is joined by US PIRG's right to repair campaign director Nathan Proctor, who explains why the imminent end of free support for Windows 10 computers is a ticking timebomb, with millions of computers slated for recycling centers and landfills. Nathan and Jason discuss the state of right to repair legislation all over the United States, the progress that has been made, and the next areas that right to repair experts are going to be focusing on. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
Inside Musk’s Government Takeover
We dedicate the whole free section of this episode to Musk’s takeover of the federal government. We got audio from a meeting in which a Musk ally laid out their plans for AI across the government, and revealed who is now the head of HR for DOGE. In the subscribers only section, we talk about how your public library probably already has a bunch of AI slop. YouTube version: https://youtu.be/fTgHpq4-psQ ‘Things Are Going to Get Intense:’ How a Musk Ally Plans to Push AI on the Government Musk’s DOGE Brings in HR Consultant Focused on ‘Non-Woke’ DEI 'Aligned With Our Faith’ AI-Generated Slop Is Already In Your Public Library Subscribe at 404media.co for bonus content. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
Buzzfeed's AI Ads Are a Disaster
We start this week with Emanuel's story on how AI-powered ads on Buzzfeed are recommending people buy things like a hat worn by a person who died by suicide. After the break, Joseph talks about an unprecedented leak out of phone forensics tech Graykey. In the subscribers-only section, Sam tells us about HarperCollins' AI deal and how MIT Press is exploring one too. YouTube version: https://youtu.be/CAw0VvCvavA AI-Powered Buzzfeed Ads Suggest You Buy Hat of Man Who Died by Suicide Leaked Documents Show What Phones Secretive Tech ‘Graykey’ Can Unlock HarperCollins Confirms It Has a Deal to Sell Authors' Work to AI Company AI Companies Are Trying to Get MIT Press Books Subscribe at 404media.co for bonus content. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
Signal's Meredith Whittaker on Backdoors and AI
This is a special interview episode with Meredith Whittaker, the president of the Signal Foundation. I'm sure you all know, and maybe even use, the Signal messaging app. Here we sat down with Whittaker to talk all about the state of Signal today, the threat of AI to end-to-end encryption, what backdoors actually look like, and much more. This is a wide-ranging discussion where one of the few journalists who has revealed new details about backdoors (Joseph) gets to speak to one of the most important people in the world of encryption (Whittaker). Definitely take a listen. Paid subscribers got access to this episode early by the way. Dark Wire: The Incredible True Story of the Largest Sting Operation Ever Signal page on government data requests Microsoft Will Switch Off Recall by Default After Security Backlash Telegram CEO Pavel Durov interview Subscribe at 404media.co for early access and bonus content. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
How to Detect Phone Spying Tech (with Cooper Quintin)
Joseph speaks to Cooper Quintin, a security researcher and senior public interest technologist with the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF). Quintin is one of the people behind Rayhunter, an easy to install tool that can detect nearby IMSI-catchers. This tech, sometimes known as Stingrays, poses as a fake cellphone tower to track a phone’s location, intercept calls and texts, and can sometimes even deliver malware. Rayhunter GitHub: https://github.com/EFForg/rayhunter YouTube: https://youtu.be/vEFPPaOn0ts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
Is Criticizing AI Ableist?
The organization that runs National Novel Writing Month, a November challenge to write 50,000 words, said "the categorical condemnation of Artificial Intelligence has classist and ableist undertones." Does it? Also Discussed: NaNoWriMo Says Condemning AI Is ‘Classist and Ableist’ This Is Doom Running on a Diffusion Model Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
Why Are We Obsessed With Aliens? (With Becky Ferreira)
Humanity has talked about aliens throughout recorded history, and obsession that has changed science, faith, and media. The past few years have been very exciting for those who want to believe. The U.S. government has released tantalizing videos and held several gripping hearings showing and discussing UFOs. People who always thought the government was hiding evidence of alien life from the general population saw it as proof that what they’ve said was happening all along. Skeptics have made compelling arguments for why all these revelations could be anything but aliens. But this debate and humanity’s obsession with aliens goes as far back as recorded history. In her book, First Contact: The Story of Our Obsession with Aliens, 404 Media’s science reporter and author of The Abstract newsletter Becky Ferreira delves deep into this history, what it teaches us about humans, and what the near and far future of the search for alien life looks like. I had a great time reading Becky’s book and an even better time discussing it with her on the podcast. It’s a great conversation that unpacks why these stories get so much attention, and a perspective on aliens in the news and pop culture that’s rooted in history and science. YouTube Version: https://youtu.be/QToByEeq2vU Subscribe at 404media.co for bonus content. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
ICE's Backdoor Into a Nationwide AI Surveillance Network
This week is a bumper episode all about Flock, the automatic license plate reading (ALPR) cameras across the U.S. First, Jason explains how we found that ICE essentially has backdoor access to the network through local cops. After the break, Joseph tells us all about Nova, the planned product that Flock is making which will make the technology even more invasive by using hacked data. In the subscribers-only section, Emanuel details the massive changes AI platform Civitai has made, and why it's partly in response to our reporting. YouTube version: https://youtu.be/-PTrY9x8K9c ICE Taps into Nationwide AI-Enabled Camera Network, Data Shows License Plate Reader Company Flock Is Building a Massive People Lookup Tool, Leak Shows Civitai Ban of Real People Content Deals Major Blow to the Nonconsensual AI Porn Ecosystem Subscribe at 404media.co for bonus content. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
The Tea Breach Just Keeps Getting Worse
We start this week with Emanuel’s and Joseph’s coverage of Tea, a women’s dating safety app that was breached multiple times. After the break, Sam and Emanuel talk about how a new UK law about age verification is impacting peoples’ ability to see footage about current events. In the subscribers-only section, Jason explains that LeBron James is not in fact pregnant. YouTube version: https://youtu.be/q17GRPq7K3o Women Dating Safety App 'Tea' Breached, Users' IDs Posted to 4chan A Second Tea Breach Reveals Users’ DMs About Abortions and Cheating UK Users Need to Post Selfie or Photo ID to View Reddit's r/IsraelCrimes, r/UkraineWarFootage Credit Card Companies Are Hurting the Future of Video Games Steam Bends to Payment Processors on Porn Games LeBron James' Lawyers Send Cease-and-Desist to AI Company Making Pregnant Videos of Him Subscribe at 404media.co for bonus content. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
How Identity Literally Changes What You See (with Samuel Bagg)
This week Joseph talks to Samuel Bagg, assistant professor of political science at the University of South Carolina. Bagg recently wrote a fascinating essay, linked below, about how the problem with lots of things might be knowledge-based (people believing stuff that’s wrong or dangerous) but the solution is not more knowledge. It’s all about social identity. This is an incredibly interesting discussion, and definitely check out more of Bagg’s writing. The Problem is Epistemic. The Solution is Not The Dispersion of Power: A Critical Realist Theory of Democracy YouTube version: https://youtu.be/lNKOqp-rZL8 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
The Rise of AI Book Ripoffs
We start this week's episode with Joseph finding out someone basically ripped off his book with a potentially AI-generated summary. Emanuel also updates us on some of the impact his reporting on AI in libraries has had. After the break, Sam tells us all about a Y Combinator supported startup that is straight-up dehumanizing factory workers. In the subscribers-only section, we talk about an apparent act of protest from inside the U.S. government involving an AI video of Musk and Trump. YouTube version: https://youtu.be/Smx3xHTEZiE SXSW event information A Slop Publisher Sold a Ripoff of My Book on Amazon Y Combinator Supports AI Startup Dehumanizing Factory Workers AI Video of Trump Sucking Musk's Toes Blasted on Government Office TVs Subscribe at 404media.co for bonus content. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
Exposing the People Behind Deepfake Porn Sites with Bellingcat Investigator Kolina Koltai
This week, Sam is in conversation with Kolina Koltai. Kolina is an investigator, senior researcher and trainer at Bellingcat. Her investigations focus on the people and systems behind AI companies and platforms that peddle non-consensual deepfake explicit imagery. They discuss how she found herself in this field, her recent investigation uncovering the man behind two deepfake porn sites, and how it feels to watch these sites go down after exposing the people running them. YouTube Version: https://youtu.be/CbmUwwVGaf4 Stories discussed: Profiting From Exploitation: How We Found the Man Behind Two Deepfake Porn Sites Behind a Secretive Global Network of Non-Consensual Deepfake Pornography Unmasking MrDeepFakes: Canadian Pharmacist Linked to World’s Most Notorious Deepfake Porn Site Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
The DNA of 15 Million People Is For Sale
This week we start with the bankruptcy of commercial DNA company 23andMe, and what it means for its users' genetic data. Probably not good things! After the break, Joseph and Jason explain what 'Dogequest' is, and how people allegedly vandalizing Tesla locations have been caught. In the subscribers-only section, Emanuel tells us about some fake audio of JD Vance talking about Musk, and then we all chat about the crazy Signal group chat story. YouTube version: https://youtu.be/OLh0IDigwAM DNA of 15 Million People for Sale in 23andMe Bankruptcy Did the FBI Seize My Vagina Cultures? ‘Dogequest’ Site Claims to Dox Tesla Owners Across the U.S. How Three Alleged Tesla Vandals Got Caught Viral Audio of JD Vance Badmouthing Elon Musk Is Fake, Just the Tip of the AI Iceberg Subscribe at 404media.co for bonus content. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
A Whirlwind Tour of DEF CON
This month Joseph went to the annual DEF CON hacking conference and spoke to a bunch of interesting hackers, researchers, and technologists. We wanted to provide our paying subscribers with a snapshot of what it's like to be at DEF CON—the sounds, the vibe, the people, the hacks. Become a paying subscriber now at 404media.co to listen! The Golden Age of Hackers in Vegas Is Over Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
Ring Is Back and Scarier Than Ever
We start this week with exciting news: we bought a Super Bowl ad! For… $2,550. We explain how. After the break, Jason tells us about Ring’s recently launched Search Party feature, and gives us a very timely reminder of what Ring really is and how we got here. In the subscribers-only section, Joseph breaks down Lockdown Mode and how it kept the FBI out of a Washington Post reporter’s phone. Timestamps: 0:00 - Intro 2:49 - Watch 404 Media’s Super Bowl Ad 27:29 - With Ring, American Consumers Built a Surveillance Dragnet: SUBSCRIBER'S STORY - FBI Couldn’t Get into WaPo Reporter’s iPhone Because It Had Lockdown Mode Enabled YouTube version: https://youtu.be/0JK-VSrtlWw Watch 404 Media’s Super Bowl Ad With Ring, American Consumers Built a Surveillance Dragnet FBI Couldn’t Get into WaPo Reporter’s iPhone Because It Had Lockdown Mode Enabled Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
The Trump Admin's Signal Clone Was Hacked
We start this week's episode with our massive story on TeleMessage, the Signal clone the Trump administration uses to archive messages which was hacked. We have more detail than anyone else on that story. After the break, Jason tells us about another hack, this time GlobalX Air, one of the airlines used by ICE for deportation flights. In the subscribers-only section, Sam and Emanuel tell us about the shut down of Mr. Deepfakes, and what the lasting legacy of the site will be. YouTube version: https://youtu.be/J__qWnFJZgA The Signal Clone the Trump Admin Uses Was Hacked Senator Demands Investigation into Trump Admin Signal Clone After 404 Media Investigation GlobalX, Airline for Trump’s Deportations, Hacked Mr. Deepfakes, the Biggest Deepfake Porn Site on the Internet, Says It’s Shutting Down for Good Subscribe at 404media.co for bonus content. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
The People Tracking America's AI Data Centers
We start this week with Matthew’s story about an organization tracking the location of AI data centers around the U.S. and elsewhere in the world. After the break, Jason tells us all about what Grok got up to over the holiday break, and we ruminate on what the breakdown in the information ecosystem means. In the subscribers-only section, we talk about how we bought 404media.com! Timestamps: 1:38 - Researchers Are Hunting America for Hidden Datacenters 25:58 - Grok's AI CSAM Shitshow Subscriber's Story: We Bought 404media.com YouTube version: https://youtu.be/zT9lEyHnZIk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
How the U.S. Government Tracks Your Phone
This week we start with a massive story about location data. Privacy advocates gained access to a tool bought by multiple U.S. agencies called Locate X, which tracks smartphones around the world. We focused on how it can be used to track abortion clinic visitors. After the break we have a special guest: Becky Ferreira, author of our recently launched column The Abstract! Becky tells us all about her journey into science journalism and a couple of the studies she's covered. In the subscribers-only section, Jason explains how he found a Musk-funded PAC was targeting opposing Snapchat ads to Muslim and Jewish voters in the U.S. YouTube version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uGsobtws2MU Inside the U.S. Government-Bought Tool That Can Track Phones at Abortion Clinics Is There Life on Europa? This Is Exactly How an Elon Musk-Funded PAC Is Microtargeting Muslims and Jews With Opposing Messages Subscribe at 404media.co for bonus content. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
Welcome to 404 Media
Welcome to 404 Media! On this special introductory episode, 404 Media co-founders Joseph Cox, Sam Cole, Emanuel Maiberg, and Jason Koebler explain what's in store for this new, journalist-founded media outlet. After the break, Joseph and Jason break down how violent criminals have managed to gain access to a supply chain of data that lets them dox nearly anyone in America. Most of the country likely has no idea their data is collected and sold this way, and certainly don't know that criminals now have access too. Subscribe to 404 Media at 404media.co to gain access to an ad-free version of this podcast, as well as bonus podcast content. Subscribers are the bedrock of building a sustainable business for our journalism. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
Pokémon Go to The Military Industrial Complex
This week we start with Emanuel's couple of stories about Niantic, the company that makes Pokémon Go, and its plan to build an AI model based on data collected by its users. After the break, Jason and Emanuel talk about their big investigation into the rise of "AI pimping." In the subscribers-only section, Joseph explains why he doesn't use a mobile phone and how he uses an iPad Mini instead. YouTube version: https://youtu.be/9NhJGqEqx-U Pokémon Go Players Have Unwittingly Trained AI to Navigate the World Pokémon Go Data ‘Adding Amplitude to War Is Obviously an Issue,’ Niantic Exec Says Inside the Booming 'AI Pimping' Industry I Don't Own a Cellphone. Can This Privacy-Focused Network Change That? Subscribe at 404media.co for bonus content. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
How Wikipedia Will Survive in the Age of AI (With Wikipedia’s CTO Selena Deckelmann)
The Wikimedia Foundation’s chief technology and product officer explains how she helps manage one of the most visited sites in the world in the age of generative AI. Wikipedia is turning 25 this month, and it’s never been more important. The online, collectively created encyclopedia has been a cornerstone of the internet decades, but as generative AI started flooding every platform with AI-generated slop over the last couple of years, Wikipedia’s governance model, editing process, and dedication to citing reliable sources has emerged as one of the most reliable and resilient models we have. And yet, as successful as the model is, it’s almost never replicated. This week on the podcast we’re joined by Selena Deckelmann, the Chief Product and Technology Officer at the Wikimedia Foundation, the nonprofit organization that operates Wikipedia. That means Selena oversees the technical infrastructure and product strategy for one of the most visited sites in the world, and one the most comprehensive repositories of human knowledge ever assembled. Wikipedia is turning 25 this month, so I wanted to talk to Selena about how Wikipedia works and how it plans to continue to work in the age of generative AI. YouTube Version: https://youtu.be/39LR9ouJR3c Subscribe at 404media.co for bonus content. Listen to the weekly podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or YouTube. Wikipedia’s value in the age of generative AI The Editors Protecting Wikipedia from AI Hoaxes Wikipedia Pauses AI-Generated Summaries After Editor Backlash Wikipedia Says AI Is Causing a Dangerous Decline in Human Visitors Jimmy Wales Says Wikipedia Could Use AI. Editors Call It the 'Antithesis of Wikipedia' Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
Why the WordPress Chaos Matters
We start this week's episode with the ongoing (and pretty confusing!) conflict between Wordpress.com and WP Engine. It might sound like drama, but it actually could have ramifications for the wider web. Sam talks us through it. After the break, Jason explains how he used AI to apply to more than a dozen jobs over breakfast, and how tons of other people are using these tools themselves. In the subscribers-only section, Jason talks about a presentation inside the National Archives which shows the agency's big push towards AI. YouTube version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-H_E4yjTJZQ ‘The Community Is In Chaos:’ WordPress.org Now Requires You Denounce Affiliation With WP Engine To Log In ‘I Applied to 2,843 Roles’: The Rise of AI-Powered Job Application Bots ‘AI-Mazing Tech-Venture’: National Archives Pushes Google Gemini AI on Employees Subscribe at 404media.co for bonus content. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
The (Hacked) Spy In Your Car
We start this week with Joseph’s investigation into Nexar, a popular dashcam company that was catastrophically hacked. Nexar is also uploading user footage to a publicly available map without some drivers’ knowledge. After the break, Sam tells us about her trip to San Diego to cover the sentencing of someone she has covered for years. In the subscribers-only section, we talk about the Charlie Kirk assassination and our reporting around that. YouTube version: https://youtu.be/-51f4patIkw This Company Turns Dashcams into ‘Virtual CCTV Cameras.’ Then Hackers Got In Michael Pratt, GirlsDoPorn Ringleader, Sentenced to 27 Years in Prison Comcast Executives Warn Workers To Not Say The Wrong Thing About Charlie Kirk Charlie Kirk Was Not Practicing Politics the Right Way Subscribe at 404media.co for bonus content. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
The Company Secretly Turning Your Zoom Meetings into Podcasts
This week we start with Emanuel’s crazy story about WebinarTV, a company that is secretly recording Zoom meetings and turning them into AI-powered podcasts. It’s nuts. After the break, Joseph tells us about the eccentric billionaire who tried to become a cocaine kingpin. In the subscribers-only section, we lament the lose of the metaverse. 1:06 - This Company Is Secretly Turning Your Zoom Meetings into AI Podcasts 25:58 - An Adrenaline Junkie Millionaire’s Quest to Become a Cocaine Kingpin Sub's Story: RIP Metaverse, an $80 Billion Dumpster Fire Nobody Wanted Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
The AI Exodus Begins
We start this week with a series of articles from Emanuel about a crackdown in the AI industry. After the break, Sam tells us about the ‘Save Our Signs’ campaign which hopes to preserve the history of national parks. In the subscribers-only section, Jason rants about how AI will not save the media industry. YouTube version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b-fo7O8B_mk 404 Media Los Angeles event details (free for subscribers; $10 otherwise) a16z-Backed AI Site Civitai Is Mostly Porn, Despite Claiming Otherwise Hugging Face Is Hosting 5,000 Nonconsensual AI Models of Real People Payment Processors Are Pushing AI Porn Off Its Biggest Platforms 'Save Our Signs' Wants to Save the Real History of National Parks Before Trump Erases It The Media's Pivot to AI Is Not Real and Not Going to Work Subscribe at 404media.co for bonus content. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
Google, Reddit, and the Robots.txt Rebellion
We've got a bumper episode today. First off, a whole series of stories about robots.txt and its increased use against AI, as well as Reddit only being available in Google results now (and not other search engines like DuckDuckGo). Then after the break, Sam discusses her amazing scoop which showed that multibillion dollar company Runway scraped videos from individual YouTube creators. In the subscribers-section, everyone educates Joseph on what Skibidi is. The Backlash Against AI Scraping Is Real and Measurable Websites are Blocking the Wrong AI Scrapers (Because AI Companies Keep Making New Ones) Google Is the Only Search Engine That Works on Reddit Now Thanks to AI Deal AI Video Generator Runway Trained on Thousands of YouTube Videos Without Permission Skibidi Toilet Copyright Takedown Request to Garry’s Mod Is Very Dumb Subscribe at 404media.co for bonus content. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
The Underground Trade of Car Hacking Tech
We start this week with Joseph’s investigation into people selling custom patches for the Flipper Zero, a piece of hacking tech that car thieves can now use to break into a wide range of vehicles. After the break, Jason tells us about the new meta in AI slop: making 80s nostalgia videos. In the subscribers-only section, we all talk about Citizen, and how the app is pushing AI-written crime alerts without human intervention. YouTube version: https://youtu.be/nV3qShvuoKw Inside the Underground Trade of ‘Flipper Zero’ Tech to Break into Cars 80s Nostalgia AI Slop Is Boomerfying the Masses for a Past That Never Existed Citizen Is Using AI to Generate Crime Alerts With No Human Review. It’s Making a Lot of Mistakes VICE News Presents: Vigilante, Inc. Subscribe at 404media.co for bonus content. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
REPLAY: Signal's Meredith Whittaker on Backdoors and AI
This is a special interview episode with Meredith Whittaker, the president of the Signal Foundation. I'm sure you all know, and maybe even use, the Signal messaging app. Here we sat down with Whittaker to talk all about the state of Signal today, the threat of AI to end-to-end encryption, what backdoors actually look like, and much more. This is a wide-ranging discussion where one of the few journalists who has revealed new details about backdoors (Joseph) gets to speak to one of the most important people in the world of encryption (Whittaker). Definitely take a listen. Paid subscribers got access to this episode early by the way. YouTube Version: https://youtu.be/kconAXZgsxg Dark Wire: The Incredible True Story of the Largest Sting Operation Ever Signal page on government data requests Microsoft Will Switch Off Recall by Default After Security Backlash Telegram CEO Pavel Durov interview Subscribe at 404media.co for early access and bonus content. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
The Truth Behind DeepSeek
We start this week with Emanuel's rundown on the DeepSeek situation, the Chinese-made AI that has rocked stock markets and the wider AI industry. After the break, Sam explains how metadata in U.S. government memos lists Project 2025 members as the memo authors. In the subscribers-only section, Jason and Sam explain how GitHub is showing the U.S. government's purging of information in real time. YouTube version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=351BmM2SaXY DeepSeek Mania Shakes AI Industry to Its Core Memos to Federal Employees Were Written By People With Ties to Project 2025, Metadata Shows Trump’s Administration Is Taking Down Sites About Gender Identity All Over the Internet GitHub Is Showing the Trump Administration Scrubbing Government Web Pages in Real Time Subscribe at 404media.co for bonus content. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
The Crackdown on ICE Spotting Apps (with Joshua Aaron)
Joseph speaks to Joshua Aaron, the creator of ICEBlock. Apple recently removed ICEBlock from its App Store after direct pressure from the Department of Justice. Joshua and Joseph talk about how the idea for ICEBlock came about, Apple and Google’s broader crackdown on similar apps, and what this all means for people trying to access information about ICE. ICEBlock Owner After Apple Removes App: ‘We Are Determined to Fight This’ Google Calls ICE Agents a Vulnerable Group, Removes ICE-Spotting App ‘Red Dot’ Apple Banned an App That Simply Archived Videos of ICE Abuses YouTube version: https://youtu.be/WLpyObHkPqc Subscribe at 404media.co for bonus content. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
The Latest Epstein Dump is a Disaster
We start this week with Sam and Emanuel’s article about the latest Epstein dump, and how it’s really a disaster in a lot of ways. After the break, Matthew runs us through Moltbot and its terrible security. After the break, Emanuel breaks down his two recent stories about a fundamental issue exposing a bunch of very sensitive data. 0:00 - Intro 2:19 - DOJ Released Unredacted Nude Images in Epstein Files 25:08 - Silicon Valley’s Favorite New AI Agent Has Serious Security Flaws 34:55 - Exposed Moltbook Database Let Anyone Take Control of Any AI Agent on the Site YouTube version: https://youtu.be/gDcOOP_Y9cU DOJ Released Unredacted Nude Images in Epstein Files Silicon Valley’s Favorite New AI Agent Has Serious Security Flaws Exposed Moltbook Database Let Anyone Take Control of Any AI Agent on the Site App for Quitting Porn Leaked Users' Masturbation Habits Massive AI Chat App Leaked Millions of Users Private Conversations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
The ICE Tool That Tracks Entire Neighborhoods
We start this week with Joseph’s article about Webloc, a tool ICE bought that can monitor phones in entire neighborhoods. After the break, Emanuel and Sam talk about their recent coverage of Grok. In the subscribers-only section, Jason explains how police inadvertently unmasked millions of their surveillance targets through a Flock redaction error. Timestamps: 0:00 - Intro 2:50 - First Story 23:00 - Second Story YouTube version: https://youtu.be/rurJo6vPhUY Inside ICE’s Tool to Monitor Phones in Entire Neighborhoods DHS Is Lying To You Inside the Telegram Channel Jailbreaking Grok Over and Over Again Masterful Gambit: Musk Attempts to Monetize Grok's Wave of Sexual Abuse Imagery Police Unmask Millions of Surveillance Targets Because of Flock Redaction Error Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
Landlords Demand Your Workplace Logins to Scrape Paystubs
We start this week with Joseph’s article about landlords and income verification companies demanding login details from potential renters so the companies can log in and scrape their paystubs. That has some potential legal issues for everyone involved! After the break, 18 lawyers tell us why they used AI. In the subscribers-only section, Emanuel breaks down the massive drama around Ruby. YouTube version: https://youtu.be/KtvSBb6rtHE Landlords Demand Tenants’ Workplace Logins to Scrape Their Paystubs 18 Lawyers Caught Using AI Explain Why They Did It How Ruby Went Off the Rails Subscribe at 404media.co for bonus content. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
Why Are DHS Agents Wearing Meta Ray-Bans?
We start this week with Jason’s article about a CBP official wearing Meta Ray-Bans smart glasses to an immigration raid. A lot of stuff happened after we published that article too. After the break, Sam tells us about the bargain that voice actors are making with AI. In the subscribers-only section, Jason tells us how a DEA official used a cop’s password to AI cameras to then do immigration surveillance. YouTube version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nxHFsQSVRkE Get your subscriber code and tickets for the live event here A CBP Agent Wore Meta Smart Glasses to an Immigration Raid in Los Angeles Voiceover Artists Weigh the 'Faustian Bargain' of Lending Their Talents to AI Feds Used Local Cop's Password to Do Immigration Surveillance With Flock Cameras Congress Launches Investigation into Flock After 404 Media Reporting Subscribe at 404media.co for bonus content Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
How a $2,000 'Made in the USA' Phone Is Manufactured
Earlier this week we wrote an article called “A US-Made iPhone Is Pure Fantasy." The long and short of it is that Trump’s dream of moving all high tech manufacturing to the US is extremely difficult because global supply chains are so intricate, manufacturing expertise exists primarily in China, Vietnam, Cambodia, and other countries, and the components that go into a phone are often made in other countries as well. But there is currently one smartphone that qualifies for a “Made in the USA” title from the FTC. It’s the Liberty Phone, which is made by a company called Purism. The phone is a version of Purism’s Librem 5. The Made-in-China Librem 5 costs $800, and the Liberty phone costs $2,000. It has 4 GB of memory, and reviewers say that its specs are pretty outdated. Not every single component in the Liberty Phone is made in the USA, but the company has been trying very hard to make it as American-made as possible. The fact that it exists at all is kind of a miracle, and the way that Purism is approaching manufacturing is really interesting, so I called Purism’s founder, Todd Weaver, to talk about smartphone supply chains, making tech products in the United States, and tariffs. Here’s our discussion Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
Trump Take LEGO
We start this week with our articles about Trump’s tariffs, and how they’re impacting everything from LEGO to cameras to sex toys. After the break, Emanuel explains how misfired DMCA complaints designed to help adult creators are targeting other sites, including ours. In the subscribers-only section, we do a wrap-up of a bunch of recent ChatGPT stories about suicide and murder. A content warning for suicide and self-harm for that section. YouTube version: https://youtu.be/srdUOWq_hfg Trump Take LEGO Trump Tariffs Cause Chaos on Ebay as Every Hobby Becomes Logistical Minefield How OnlyFans Piracy Is Ruining the Internet for Everyone ChatGPT Encouraged Suicidal Teen Not To Seek Help, Lawsuit Claims ChatGPT Answered 'High Risk' Questions About Suicide, New Study Finds Subscribe at 404media.co for bonus content. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
Inside an AI-Powered School
This week we start with Emanuel’s wild story about Alpha School, a very hyped AI-powered school. Emanuel got leaked documents and spoke to former employees. After the break, Sam tells us what happens when someone decides to make an AI nudify OnlyFans with your likeness. In the subscribers-only section, Joseph tells us about the agencies buying GeoSpy, an AI that can geolocate photos in seconds. 2:49 - Understood: Deepfake Porn Empire 5:47 - 'Students Are Being Treated Like Guinea Pigs:' Inside an AI-Powered Private School 40:01 - 'The Most Dejected I’ve Ever Felt:' Harassers Made Nude AI Images of Her, Then Started an OnlyFans YouTube version: https://youtu.be/fy-38hIhykQ Understood: Deepfake Porn Empire 'Students Are Being Treated Like Guinea Pigs:' Inside an AI-Powered Private School 'The Most Dejected I’ve Ever Felt:' Harassers Made Nude AI Images of Her, Then Started an OnlyFans Cops Are Buying ‘GeoSpy’, an AI That Geolocates Photos in Seconds Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
Total Chaos at Meta
We've got much more on what is happening inside Meta with the company's recent speech policy changes. Jason runs us through it. After the break, Joseph explains how thousands of apps have been hijacked to steal your location data, possibly without the app developers' knowledge. In the subscribers-only section, we talk about various stories intersecting with the LA fires, such as Amazon delivery drivers and AI images. YouTube version: https://youtu.be/ItOENEWAy3s. ‘It’s Total Chaos Internally at Meta Right Now’: Employees Protest Zuckerberg’s Anti LGBTQ Changes Meta Deletes Trans and Nonbinary Messenger Themes Candy Crush, Tinder, MyFitnessPal: See the Thousands of Apps Hijacked to Spy on Your Location Online Behavioral Ads Fuel the Surveillance Industry—Here’s How People Think AI Images of Hollywood Sign Burning Are Real An Amazon Delivery Confirmation Photo Is the Last Time a Palisades Resident Saw Her Burnt Down House ‘We’re Fine’: Lying to Ourselves About a Climate Disaster Subscribe at 404media.co for bonus content. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
Amazon Is Selling AI-Generated Books That Are a Matter of 'Life or Death'
On this week's episode Joseph, Jason, Emanuel and Sam first talk about how Amazon is selling mushroom foraging books that appear to be AI-generated. Not great when foraging can be a matter of life or death. After the break, Joseph explains how he tracked someone through the New York subway using a privacy-leaking feature on an MTA website. ‘Life or Death:’ AI-Generated Mushroom Foraging Books Are All Over Amazon I Tracked an NYC Subway Rider's Movements with an MTA ‘Feature’ NYC Subway Will Disable ‘Feature’ That Leaked Trip History After 404 Media Investigation For an ad-free version of this podcast and to access bonus episodes, become a subscriber at 404media.co. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
We Tracked Ourselves with Exposed Flock Cameras
We start this week with Jason’s story about Flock exposing a bunch of AI-powered cameras. These cameras zoom in on people as they walk by, sometimes so closely you can read what’s on their phone screen. After the break, we talk about some of our biggest stories this year. In the subscribers-only section, we give some of our personal recommendations of games, other reporting, or just a more chill life. Timestamps:0:00 - Intro00:54 - Gift a 404 Media subscription2:27 - Flock Exposed Its AI-Powered Cameras to the Internet. We Tracked Ourselves26:34 - Anyone Can Push Updates to the DOGE.gov Website29:52 - Mike Waltz Accidentally Reveals Obscure App the Government Is Using to Archive Signal Messages34:29 - How Tea’s Founder Convinced Millions of Women to Spill Their Secrets, Then Exposed Them to the World44:59 - Half of the US Now Requires You to Upload Your ID or Scan Your Face to Watch Porn YouTube Version: https://youtu.be/DrGVGphD2L0 Subscribe at 404media.co for bonus content. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
AI Companies Are Opting You In By Default
Over the past two weeks we've had a ton of stories where AI and other companies have opted users into data collection and processing by default. What the hell is going on??? They're all doing it at once! Jason starts us off with how Udemy created an 'opt-out window'. If you missed it, you're out of luck until next year. Then after the break, Sam and Joseph discuss similar stories with PayPal and LinkedIn. In the subscribers-only section, Sam talks about how a woman was essentially trapped in a driverless Waymo. Massive E-Learning Platform Udemy Gave Teachers a Gen AI 'Opt-Out Window'. It's Already Over. Paypal Opted You Into Sharing Data Without Your Knowledge LinkedIn Is Training AI on User Data Before Updating Its Terms of Service Men Harassed A Woman In A Driverless Waymo, Trapping Her In Traffic *This show is sponsored by BetterHelp* Subscribe at 404media.co for bonus content. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
Ring Is Just Getting Started
This week we start with Jason’s follow up to Ring launching its ‘Search Party’ feature. It turns out, according to a leaked email he got, the feature is only starting with finding lost dogs. After the break, Emanuel explains why we’ve learned nothing about amplification when it comes to the recent looksmaxxing trend. In the subscribers-only section, Sam explains how Grok produced the real name of a sex worker who performs pseudonymously. 1:11 - Leaked Email Suggests Ring Plans to Expand ‘Search Party’ Surveillance Beyond Dogs 30:26 - We Have Learned Nothing About Amplifying Morons Grok Exposed a Porn Performer’s Legal Name and Birthdate—Without Even Being Asked YouTube version: https://youtu.be/IEq8dlnLP8o Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm -
The Marketing Tricks of "Artificial Intelligence"
This week, Sam talks to Emily Bender and Alex Hanna about the marketing ploys of “artificial intelligence,” why ridicule works to keep big tech’s claims in check, and what makes them hopeful for the future. They’re the authors of The AI Con: How to Fight Big Tech’s Hype and Create the Future We Want.Dr. Alex Hanna is a writer and sociologist of technology, labor, and politics. She’s the Director of Research at the Distributed AI Research Institute (DAIR) and a Lecturer in the School of Information at the University of California Berkeley. Dr. Emily M. Bender is a Professor of Linguistics at the University of Washington where she is also the Faculty Director of the Computational Linguistics Master of Science program and affiliate faculty in the School of Computer Science and Engineering and the Information School.They also host the The Mystery AI Hype Theater 3000 podcast which “deflates AI hype and draws attention to the real harms of the automation technologies we call ‘artificial intelligence’.” Flood of AI-Generated Submissions ‘Final Straw’ for Small 22-Year-Old Publisher The AI Con: How to Fight Big Tech’s Hype and Create the Future We Want Emily’s cartoon Questioning the Normalization of Surveillance by the Center on Privacy & Technology at Georgetown You Are Not a Parrot at NY Mag YouTube Version: https://youtu.be/UwBZiuH-1QY Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicespdst.fm