Podcast
Podcast: Venture Capitalists a16z Fund Nonconsensual Deepfake Porn
In this week's episode, we talk a16z's investment into AI platform Civitai, our investigation into working conditions at Labcorp, and how the "brand safety" industry is destroying media.
News
The $2,000 Phones that Let Anyone Make Robocalls
Videos collected by 404 Media over months give a peep inside the world of spoofing numbers, automated call scripts, and a specific seller of the phones.
News
‘Hello Sir/Ma’am’: Person Linked to Scam Asks FBI for His Seized Cryptocurrency Back
The FBI froze cryptocurrency stored in a Binance account the agency believes is linked to a scam targeting an elderly victim. The apparent owner would like it back.
News
How SIM Swappers Straight-Up Rob T-Mobile Stores
Video shot from a getaway car shows how SIM swappers have snatched worker tablets to help them take over phone numbers.
Podcast
Podcast: How AI-Powered Cameras Took Over One Small American Town
In this week's episode, we talk Fusus AI-powered surveillance cameras, how people lost their vision (literally) at an NFT conference, and how scammers are using malicious insiders at Walmart to conduct refund fraud.
News
How a 'Refund Fraud' Gang Stole $700,000 From Amazon
Court records and online research reveal how a highly professionalized industry uses malicious insiders at Walmart and fake shipping labels to get high-end items for practically free.
News
'Untouchable': Associates React to Arrest of Drug Trafficker Turned 'Encryption King'
Hakan Ayik, who unknowingly popularized the FBI's backdoored encrypted phone called Anom, has been a most wanted criminal for years. Finally authorities arrested him last week.
FOIA
AI Cameras Took Over One Small American Town. Now They're Everywhere
Hundreds of documents obtained by 404 Media show how Fusus, a system for linking a town’s security cameras into one central hub and adding AI to them, has spread across the country.
Podcast
Podcast: We're shaking it up with a new format
We're introducing a subscribers-only segment to the weekly podcast, where we talk about even more stuff we've published.
News
Instagram Removes Account That Unmasked ‘Jew Haters’
For the last several days, an Instagram account has been unmasking people it claimed were “jew haters,” many of whom appeared to pull down posters showing Hamas’ kidnapping victims.
News
SIM Swappers Are Working Directly with Ransomware Gangs Now
Hackers connected to “the Comm,” a nebulous group that includes SIM swappers, are working with ALPHV, a ransomware group that has impacted some of the biggest companies on the planet, including MGM Casinos.
News
The Truth Behind ‘GiantCockNYC’
Someone on Grindr presented themselves as an employee that could remove blocks on the platform. That’s probably not the case, but the activity still hints at a moderation problem.