How Hacks Happen

The promise of Hollywood stardom leads some to fraud and scams. In this episode, we talk about three scammers from the land of the silver screen: Alison Gu, a convicted fraudster who tried to hire Chinese-speaking actors as witnesses for her case; Zach Horowitz (aka Zach Avery), an actor who conned his friends and major investors out of millions of dollars with fake contracts; and Mary Carole McDo...

When musician Michael Smith couldn't find an audience for his music, he manufactured it. By unleashing thousands of bots to listen to thousands of fake AI-generated songs on Spotify and other platforms, Smith earned millions in royalties before getting caught. Resources: North Carolina Musician Charged with Music Streaming Fraud Aided by Artificial Intelligence — U.S. Department of Justice No...

Voiceprint ID is the latest virtual gadget for banks and financial institutions. But how secure is it, really? Let's look at the pros and cons of voice recognition, facial ID, and the AI systems they work with, and look back at the 1992 film Sneakers to see how this 34-year-old movie predicted some of the problems with voiceprint security. Resources: BBC: Cloned customer voice beats bank secu...

Glitch or fraud? Let's explore "money glitches" popularized on social media, and the consequences faced by people who used them.  Resources: The Chase Money 'Glitch': How a Viral Fraud Scheme Backfired What you need to know about "Klarna method" posts on social media Ringleader sentenced in multimillion-dollar fraud operation which saddled victims with crushing d...

AI is undoubtedly the technology of the year for hacks and scams. While scammers are busy using AI to make scams more convincing, scam baiters are fighting back with ingenious grandma-style AIs that keep scammers busy for hours on end. There have also been some spectacular busts of scam centers. What’s next, AI scammers chatting with AI scam baiters? Now, that would be entertaining. Resources Meet...

Ever get your hair cut and wonder, "Is my barber part of an international scammer ring?" In November 2025, the FBI arrested Victor Marion, the owner of Mecca Barber Shop in San Diego, and eighteen of his buddies for scamming elderly victims out of $40 million with the classic tech support and refund scams, and for laundering the funds through the shop. Come along and find out how the sca...

If Facebook has seemed scammy for the past few years, it's not your imagination. A leaked internal document shows that Facebook, and its parent company Meta, are well aware that many of their ads and posts are scams, but they make too much money off of them to do anything about it. Get all the details on this scathing report from Reuters that has rocked the scambuster world. Resources Reuters...

Do you tap "Accept" without reading subscriber agreements? Those long-winded documents can strip away your legal rights, and even hijack your face, your voice, and your life. Let's peek inside the dystopian world of Subscriber Agreements for streaming services and see what little goodies they hold for us. Netflix in Your Neighborhood Privacy Policy Netflix Privacy Policy Disney+ Sub...

October is Cybersecurity Awareness Month, and it's time to clean house! Let's get rid of all those dust bunnies (weak passwords) and vacuum under the sofa cushions (no multi-factor authentication) and even do a check under the bed for that half-eaten Pop Tart (vulnerable emails). Hear about a few instances where poor cybersecurity led to unfortunate consequences, so you can avoid the sam...

AI is great for researching topics and digging up information. But what happens when people start to humanize their chatbots, and think they're talking to God? Or that they are God? Let's look at what makes AI come up with delusional theories, and why it tells people they're right even then they're wrong.  Resources People Are Losing Loved Ones to AI-Fueled Spiritual Fantasies...

There's a new scam going around, where a thief gets you to unlock your phone under the guise of needing to make a call, then runs off with the phone and sends themselves all your money through your apps. Learn how to protect yourself and your money with a simple smartphone trick for iPhone and Android. Send us Fan Mail Support the show

The finale of HBO's Silicon Valley series pointed up a subtle parallel to the real-world challenges in vulnerability reporting—rather than risk going to jail, Pied Piper chose to burn the company to the ground. For decades, white hat and gray hat hackers had no place to report cybersecurity flaws without fear of legal hassles. Nowadays we have Bug Bounty programs, where hackers get paid to fi...

What is Red Teaming, and what does it have to do with cybersecurity? In this episode, we look at how Red Teamers are hired to attack company security using all manner of tactics, from tossing malware-infested USB sticks into parking lots to posing as an HVAC technician. We also take a look at one of the most notorious Red Team exercises in history, when two Coalfire employees were arrested and fou...

What goes on under the hood of random number generators (RNGs)? Here we look at one of the best sources of randomness — static from electronic chips — and discuss terminology like entropy and bias, the role of the Birthday Paradox in RNGs, and the fake bias of the Excel RAND function. We'll even do a simple exercise you can try with your friends to see who picks the most "random" nu...

Ever heard of the Internet of Things, or IoT? This episode explores the use of random numbers in our everyday devices, and how they’re often not as secure as our PCs. We also look at how Apple gets it right, and what we can do to keep our devices secure in this connected world. Resources Securing the IoT Ecosystem: Challenges & Solutions Data security of IoT devices with limited resources: cha...

This episode explores the mysterious world of random number generators (RNGs) in video games. Looking at popular games like Minecraft, Stardew Valley, and Diablo II, we describe how players hack these random numbers in the same ways hackers hack encryption keys. This episode lays the groundwork for Part 2, a discussion of RNGs in encryption. Resources: How Many People Play Minecraft 2025 (Active P...

Need cash quick? Why not try a payday loan? While it might look like a better option than a credit card on its surface, the truth is that payday loans can be rather ugly and expensive, and can trap you in a cycle of debt if you don't know how it works. Find out how some states and countries keep a lid on exploding fees for short-term loans, and why a credit card is a far better option.  Resou...

Scammers are still at it, happy to ruin our lives in search of a quick buck. Let's look at job scams that attempt to steal personal information, sextortion scams preying on teenage boys, and a really nasty threatening email I personally received. Know your scams, so you can keep yourself safe. Resources: These teenage boys were blackmailed online – and it cost them their lives 'You might...

Hacks used to be impressive, utilizing bits and pieces of technology that made us sit up and pay attention. Nowadays, every scam, breach, or sketchy text message gets labelled a "hack" when it's really just basic use of existing technology, or an outright scam. Let's take a closer look at how the meaning of “hack” has changed, from the complex brilliance of NotPetya in 2017, to...

In this episode of How Hacks Happen, we delve into the complexities surrounding trash possession and legalities. Besides the legal distinctions between lost, mislaid, and abandoned property, there are the risks posed by scammers who rifle through trash for personal information so they can steal your identity or call you up and pretend to be your bank. No trash is safe in this world we live in, so...

Can you tell if someone is guilty just by looking at them? Let's delve into the infamous case of Amanda Knox, the American exchange student who was wrongfully accused of murdering her roommate in 2007. We'll talk bad cell phone forensics, media sensationalism, and cultural biases, and how they can lead to dire consequences for those who are judged not by evidence, but by how they act dif...

Send me a text! No matter who you are or where you are in the world, I'd love to hear from you. This is a call for feedback on what you like about How Hacks Happen, what you don't like, or if you just want to say Hi. Click the "Send us a text" link below, and you'll be sending a text message directly to me, Michele Bousquet. I can't wait to read what you have to say....

In May 2025, Coinbase, one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges in the world, got hacked. Or did they? It was more like a near-miss. But while we might wipe our brows in relief over this latest mishap, it doesn't bode well for the future of cryptocurrency, which is currently unregulated, uninsured, and just waiting for the next big catastrophe to leave investors crying in their collective...

In this episode we continue the story of Daniel Rigmaiden, a man arrested for tax fraud in 2008 who reveals the Stingray surveillance device used by the Feds to track his location. Despite being in jail, Rigmaiden tirelessly researches and files numerous motions, arguing that the use of Stingrays violated citizens' Fourth Amendment rights. His determination attracts the attention of the ACLU...

In 2014, the US government chose not to take a massive, rock-solid tax fraud case to trial. But why? This episode kicks off the tale of Daniel Rigmaiden, a hacker who exploited a legal loophole to regain his freedom. Find out how Rigmaiden's method for online connection, his Air Card, was both his downfall and his salvation. Take a deep dive into the data cell providers collect, how they shar...