

What the Hack?
DeleteMe
"What the Hack?" is the award-winning true cybercrime podcast--the place to hear memorable stories and get good advice.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Jul 29, 2025 • 47min
Episode 210: Cracking the Code of Fraud with AARP's Kathy Stokes
Online fraud isn't just annoying; it's a national crisis. Last year alone, it may have siphoned $158 billion from the U.S. economy. This episode features AARP's Kathy Stokes, who reveals how fraud has morphed into a sophisticated, global operation and what's being done to fight back against this evolving threat. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jul 22, 2025 • 44min
Episode 209: Unmasking the North Korean IT Scam
In this discussion, Amanda Gerut, West Coast editor for Fortune magazine and author of a revealing piece on North Korean operatives, dives into the chilling world of remote IT scams funding North Korea's nuclear ambitions. She uncovers the shocking operations of laptop farms and identity theft targeting Western companies. With insight into the harrowing conditions faced by coerced North Korean IT workers, the conversation highlights law enforcement's challenges and essential tips for freelancers on safeguarding against scams and identity theft.

Jul 15, 2025 • 48min
Episode 208: Will AI Write Its Own Laws?
Join Ben Winters, director of AI and Privacy at the Consumer Federation of America, for a front-row seat to the chaotic world of AI regulation where dirty data, aggressive lobbying, and public confusion drive a "winner takes all" vibe. From shady therapy bots to data-fueled discrimination, Ben reveals the urgent need to create guardrails for AI before it jumps the tracks. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jul 8, 2025 • 36min
Episode 207: Kristen and the Phantom Puppy
Kristin got scammed because she didn't want to give a puppy mill her business. This classic digital scam has it all: fake breeders, phony shipping agents, and a non-existent air-conditioned crate. Kristen reveals how her scammers used trust, urgency and emotion, to close the deal. Listen to her story and what you can do to avoid getting duped yourself. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jul 1, 2025 • 45min
Episode 206: Chris Hutchins’s Travel Hacking Gets Hacked
If you have never listened to Chris Hutchins explain how to get free travel, you’ve probably been paying too much for your vacations. Turns out, a threat actor was listening to him and stole his miles. Download this week’s episode to hear how he hacked the situation to score even more points.
(This episode originally airdropped September 26, 2022.) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jun 24, 2025 • 35min
Episode 205: Cybersecurity Girl Caitlin Sarian Tries to Delete Herself Online
Every part of life that comes in contact with the Internet is tracked, packed and sold to a a seemingly infinite network of data brokers. Caitlin Sarian AKA Cybersecurity Girl joined us this week to discuss why scrubbing your information is trickier than it sounds and what you can do about it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jun 17, 2025 • 49min
Episode 204: Nicole Perlroth Says All the Things that Keep Adam Up at Night
Nicole Perlroth’s book This Is How They Tell Me the World Ends is a masterpiece on the topic of cyberwar and the zero-day hacks that make it deadly. Join us as we explore with Perlroth a cyberscape where mistakes are weaponized, backdoors abound and we all have zero degrees of separation from spies and the people they spy on. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jun 10, 2025 • 45min
Episode 203: Jack Rhysider Exposes Our Digital Secrets
What if your digital footprint made you a target? Jack Rhysider, host of "Darknet Diaries," shares how a fan turned his online presence into a personal puzzle—revealing just how easily your privacy can be pieced together and exploited. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

May 27, 2025 • 42min
Episode 202: Shannon Edwards Reveals the Student Data Free-for-All in New York City Schools
As technology is integrated deeper into classrooms, the lines between education and data privacy have been destroyed by for-profit data miners. This week, privacy advocate Shannon Edwards reveals how educational apps harvest sensitive information from children, commodify their data, and what parents can do to fight it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

May 20, 2025 • 42min
Episode 201: Keren Elazari Decrypts the Ransomeware Nightmare
Ransomware is a type of malware that allows hackers to commandeer data on a device or an entire network. Increasingly, the threat actors behind these crimes set their sites on mission critical targets. We talked about it with renowned cybersecurity expert Keren Elazari this week. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices