The 404 Media Podcast

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Why Google Is Shit Now Jan 25, 2024

Show notes

We're doing something a little different this episode. For the whole free section of the podcast, we're talking all about the degradation of Google. That includes AI-generated articles making their way onto Google News, and how researchers found that, yes, Google search really is getting worse. This is a long, rich, and fun discussion. Then in the subscribers-only section, Joseph breaks down his latest investigation into a phone spying capability that is monitoring billions. Google (to their credit) cut-off a linked company in response to our inquiries.

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Google Finally Endorses Right to Repair Jan 17, 2024

Show notes

Well, that was a pleasant surprise: Google has formally endorsed right to repair! Jason not only broke this news but then had a long conversation with Google about why it made the change (spoiler: it was the concerted effort of consumers, activists, and journalists). Jason explains why this change matters in the first part of the show. After the break, Sam takes us through a pretty unusual court case and what it means for online dating. Then in the subscribers-only section, Joseph talks about a new map we just published showing which local police departments and public agencies have invested in the AI surveillance platform Fusus. Is your police department one of them? Take a look.

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Deepfaked Celeb Scam Ads Are All Over YouTube Jan 10, 2024

Show notes

Jason decided to publish our first story minutes before recording, so here is some hot off the presses material. That piece was about scam ads on YouTube involving deepfaked celebrities. After the break, Sam discussed a very bizarre FOIA response from Texas. Then in the subscribers-only section, Jason tells the long and very entertaining saga of the Polish hackers who fixed a bunch of trains, and faced legal threats in response.

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Inside a $7 Million Airbnb Scam Jan 04, 2024

Show notes

We are back for 2024! We hit the ground running this week with a story about charges against a man for allegedly orchestrating a massive, nationwide Airbnb scam. Then Sam speaks about how Pornhub is blocking access to visitors in North Carolina and Montana, who are now (predictably) using VPNs as a workaround. Then in the subscribers-only section we talk about the life and death of the encrypted app Wickr. RIP Wickr.

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These Companies Say They're Using Microphone Audio to Target Ads Dec 21, 2023

Show notes

In this week's show, we start with a couple of articles about how companies might *actually* be listening to conversations through smart device microphones to target ads. Plenty of questions remain, but we discuss everything we know so far. After the break, Sam explains a new Stanford study which has resulted in one of AI's most important datasets being taken offline (check the article itself for a clarification on Google's connection to the story which we learned after recording). In the subscribers-only section, Jason tells us how he dug into the wave of stolen, AI-generated art all over Facebook.

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How Did a 'Russian Economist' Fly into LAX With No Ticket, No Passport, No Memory of How He Got There? Dec 13, 2023

Show notes

A really bizarre mystery this week. We broke the news that a man somehow flew into LAX without a ticket or passport and DHS is totally stumped. Who knows how he got there? No one, apparently. Then Sam breaks down the latest Patreon ban hammer against a misunderstood community. In the subscriber's only section, Joseph explains a massive mistake by Verizon potentially put a person's physical safety at risk, and what this means for why he doesn't use a phone.

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a16z Funded AI Platform Generated Images That “Could Be Categorized as Child Pornography,” Leaked Documents Show Dec 06, 2023

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A content warning for the free section of this episode. Emanuel explains a massive investigation of his into how Civitai, the a16z funded AI platform, generated images that “could be categorized as child pornography,” according to internal Slack chats and more. This is a difficult, complicated, but important story. I'll leave it at that. Then in the subscriber's only section, we talk about Jason's investigation into pickleball turf wars. Remember to check out the video archive of our recent FOIA Forum too for more info on how Jason got thousands of documents for this story.

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Male Tech Conference Founder Runs Popular Woman-in-Tech Account (???) Nov 29, 2023

Show notes

So much drama this episode but with an important message behind it all. For the first half, Sam and Jason break down their stories about Eduards Sizovs, a tech conference founder who listed a fake, "auto-generated" woman as a conference speaker. Sizovs is also behind a highly popular woman-in-tech account. There are layers here.

After the break, Jason explains how Plex is leaking users' viewing habits to one another. Then in the subscribers-only section, Joseph runs us through how an established figure in the sneaker world is connected to a Chinese money laundering ring.

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OpenAI, Harry Potter Fanfic, and Hackers Who Gamble Nov 23, 2023

Show notes

Well that was a lot of drama in the world of OpenAI. Fear not, we have a unique angle on how the person in the running to be OpenAI's new CEO was a character in a Harry Potter fanfic that was written deliberately as a recruiting tool to the effective altruist movement. That's definitely a sentence. After the break Sam talks about how Twitter is pushing sex workers into a black hole, then in the subscribers-only section Joseph explains how he found that SIM swappers are gambling stolen Bitcoin at online casinos.

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Venture Capitalists a16z Fund Nonconsensual Deepfake Porn Nov 15, 2023

Show notes

We recorded this immediately after publishing some breaking news: we discovered that venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) is funding Civitai, an AI marketplace we've repeatedly shown is an engine for nonconsensual AI porn. Just this week Emanuel reported Civitai had introduced a "bounty" system, that financially rewards people for making AI-models of specific targets. We talk about both stories in the first section of the podcast. Then after the break of this episode of "The Emanuel Maiberg Show," Emanuel talks about his deep investigation into working conditions in Labcorp, one of the biggest lab companies in the country, and how Amazon-like metrics may put patients at risk. Then in the subscribers-only section, Emanuel and Jason discuss their article on how the "brand safety" industry is stopping news websites from receiving vital funding.

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