

POLITICO Tech
POLITICO
The POLITICO Tech podcast is your download on the disruption that technology is bringing to politics and policy. New episodes on Thursdays.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Dec 9, 2022 • 19min
The prime target for cybercrime
Now at the halfway point of the series, we talk to a former military cyber-intelligence officer about the feedback loop between the defense community and the private sector and unpack the domestic threats posed by nation-state actors in the cybercriminal underground.
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Dec 8, 2022 • 22min
The intelligence blindspot
Funded by the Secret Service, the National Computer Forensics Institute is tasked with training law enforcement officers across the country in the tools they need to combat crime in an increasingly digital world. In this episode of our series on darknet forums, we dig into the top-down information-sharing model between federal, state, and local law enforcement officials. We see how jurisdictional issues can slow investigations into an increasingly interconnected global cybercriminal network, and talk with experts from the NCFI about how they’re trying to improve the playbook agencies use to fight cybercrime in the twenty-first century.
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Dec 7, 2022 • 17min
A law enforcement window into the dark web
In the third episode of our series on darknet marketplaces, we’ll meet investigators who spent their careers examining these dark corners of the internet with a magnifying glass. We learn how to follow the money with the woman who pioneered what would eventually become the DEA’s Cyber Support Section. We talk to an ex-FBI agent who brought down global hacking collectives and darknet forums. N matter how advanced the technology gets, enterprising agents turn to traditional investigative techniques to get the job done. But it’s far from a perfect process.
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Dec 6, 2022 • 17min
The who's who of darknet forums
In the second episode of our series on darknet marketplaces, we look at the personalities that helped build popular darknet forums and learn about the communication technologies and cryptocurrencies their members rely on. We also dig into how the geopolitics of the Russia-Ukraine war changed the nature of cooperation amongst cyber criminals on the dark net.
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Dec 5, 2022 • 15min
The darkest parts of the internet: Introducing POLITICO Tech
Welcome to POLITICO Tech. We’re kicking off with a limited series exploring darknet marketplaces, some of the least regulated parts of the world wide web. As malware and cybercrime attacks become increasingly frequent, regulators and law enforcement agencies work different angles to shut these platforms down, but new, often more unassailable, marketplaces pop up. We’ll trace the latest evolution of a global network of cybercriminal actors and the people tasked with catching them. In this series premiere, we’ll talk with ransomware experts and discuss the tradecraft of cybercrime collectives and the challenges inherent in monitoring them online.
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Jul 15, 2022 • 13min
Indiana abortion shines light on post-Roe chaos
The account of a 10-year-old Ohio girl seeking an abortion in Indiana has garnered international attention amid the fall of Roe v. Wade. Indiana's Attorney General is threatening criminal charges against the doctor who performed the abortion. Alice Miranda Ollstein reports.
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Jul 14, 2022 • 10min
The 'small, lonely girls club' of former aides fighting Trump
As the January 6 hearings progress, a cadre of young, female, former Trump aides have created an informal network to support each other. Meridith McGraw reports.
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Jul 13, 2022 • 10min
FDA weighs first-ever OTC birth control pill
The Food and Drug Administration is reviewing a first-of-its-kind application from HRA Pharma for Opill. If green-lit by the agency, Opill would become the first daily, hormonal birth control pill sold without a prescription. The submission of the application follows more than six years of studies the company has run. Alice Miranda Ollstein reports.
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Jul 12, 2022 • 13min
What, exactly, is Biden getting from his Middle East trip?
The Biden administration argues that the president's upcoming visits to Israel and Saudi Arabia are of great strategic importance. But possible images of him glad-handing with the Saudi crown prince threatens to be the defining moment. Alex Ward reports.
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Jul 11, 2022 • 10min
Did Minnesota accidentally legalize weed? Kinda, sorta, it’s complicated.
Earlier this month, a Minnesota law took effect that allows adults to purchase edibles or beverages with up to 5 milligrams of hemp-derived THC per serving. But some key state lawmakers were confused when they realized they had made those THC products legal. Paul Demko reports.
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