Behind The Blog
Behind the Blog: An AI Army Foot Fetish
This week, we discuss a PC repair battle, a revealing comment from an FBI official, and a dangerous narrative.
News
Proton Mail Helped FBI Unmask Anonymous ‘Stop Cop City’ Protester
A court record reviewed by 404 Media shows privacy-focused email provider Proton Mail handed over payment data related to a Stop Cop City email account to the Swiss government, which handed it to the FBI.
Podcast
Podcast: The Depravity Economy
How Polymarket and Kalshi bet on Iran; AI translations are impacting Wikipedia; and an Amazon change impacting wishlists.
fbi
The FBI Discusses the Potential to Use AI to Hack Targets
AI is a “game changer” for what the FBI calls remote access operations, an FBI official said in response to a 404 Media question on Tuesday.
DHS
CBP Tapped Into the Online Advertising Ecosystem To Track Peoples’ Movements
An internal DHS document obtained by 404 Media shows for the first time CBP used location data sourced from the online advertising industry to track phone locations. ICE has bought access to similar tools.
Podcast
How to Detect Phone Spying Tech (with Cooper Quintin)
Joseph speaks to Cooper Quintin all about how to find fake cell phone towers that can track your movements or intercept text messages.
Behind The Blog
Behind the Blog: Using Your Brain
This week, we discuss wishes made for better privacy, god complexes, and the point of it all.
Impact
Lawmakers Demand DHS Define ‘Domestic Terrorist’ As It Uses Vast Array of Surveillance Tools
Rep. Bennie G. Thompson and a host of other Democrats made the demand in a letter to DHS Secretary Kristi Noem. “Your actions are abhorrent, blatantly unconstitutional, and corrosive to the functioning of a
peaceful society.”
transparency
The Government Just Made it Harder to See What Spy Tech it Buys
On Wednesday, the government stopped supporting FPDS.gov, an indispensable resource for finding what ICE, the FBI, and every other agency is buying. Its replacement site completely sucks.
Podcast
Podcast: Ring Is Just Getting Started
A leaked Ring email; looksmaxxing; and another Grok screwup.
Privacy
This App Warns You if Someone Is Wearing Smart Glasses Nearby
The creator of Nearby Glasses made the app after reading 404 Media's coverage of how people are using Meta's Ray-Bans smartglasses to film people without their knowledge or consent. “I consider it to be a tiny part of resistance against surveillance tech.”
ICE
How ICE and CBP Use Free Walkie-Talkie App ‘Zello’ to Power Their Operations
404 Media found multiple users of Zello, an app previously used by January 6 insurrectionists, linked to ICE officials. An officer at the scene of an CBP official shooting a U.S. citizen also used the app.