CYBER

The US has accused Russia and China of trying to hack research groups that are working on a coronavirus vaccine. Is that a bad thing? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Motherboard reporter Lorenzo Franceschi-Bicchierai hosts this special episode of Cyber. He's joined by Joseph Cox, who reported on the Twitter hack that had the accounts of Elon Musk, Joe Biden, and Apple amongst others tweet out a cryptocurrency scam. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It’s a tale as old as our digital era: Tech enthusiasts wanting to repair their devices without the authorization of the company that makes them. Apple, for example, is notoriously awful at allowing users access to easy fixes of iPhones or Macbooks and instead offers expensive options with one of its “geniuses.” And like everything in our society, the current pandemic has exposed these right to repairs practises for what they are: Ridiculous. Our Motherboard EIC Jason Koebler is here to tell us about a Polish hacker who is saving ventilators. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It’s straight out of a hacking thriller: drug dealers. Murderers. Extortionists. Traffickers. Hit men. All using an encrypted network to openly talk about their illicit trades, amassing millions in messages. Then, like the magical hacks of a CSI cyber episode, the cops were in the network and went on the offensive.In one of his wildest stories to date, and that’s saying something, we have the great Motherboard reporter Joseph Cox on the show this week to tell us all about his wild cybercrime scoop. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It used to be that American hackers and the NSA were the unquestionable world’s best. Following the many revelations from the Snowden leaks, it became clear the U.S. government had not only violated the civil liberties of American citizens, but the NSA had done an excellent job hacking, well, everything. It hacked the phones of world leaders (including key allies) and made major geopolitical rivals China and Russia very nervous.But, like everything else in the world, American hegemony in cyberspace has quickly faded as the proverbial American empire looks like it's in quick decline for a variety of obvious reasons. And when it comes to hacking powers across the world, it’s been widely reported that everyone from China to private mercenaries have caught up to the hacking skills of American hackers. So for our Independence Day edition of CYBER, Motherboard reporter Lorenzo Francheschi Bicchiarrai and host Ben Makuch are discussing America’s standing among the world powers of cyberspace. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The US government is in a race with China to provide the world with 5G networks. Some call it the new arms race, as both Washington and Beijing go from country to country trying to negotiate for its companies to provide the future of the internet’s architecture. Part of that has been Trump himself slagging Huawei and undermining the Chinese company as national security risk: The allegation being the company would give the Chinese government a mainline into spying on countries across the world. While some experts agree those fears are well founded, some of the bravade is undoubtedly part of the game of geopolitics. Today on the show we have Andy Purdy, Chief Security Officer for Huawei Technologies USA, to discuss the concerns around the company’s technologies. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On CYBER this week, we’re talking about a novel that frightfully depicts a not-so-distant future where FBI agents work with robot partners and terrorists meet up inside video games. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Back in 2011 during Occupy Wall Street protests, a certain hacktivist collective truly came into its own. The years since Anonymous exploded in popularity and even became the constant pop culture reference point to all hacktivism or even, just hackers. But as we’ve discussed on the show, lately, it kind of seems to have disappeared. Until the latest Black Lives Matter protests seems to have kicked it back into the headlines. I got Motherboard reporter Lorenzo Francheschi Bicchierrai on the show to tell us more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Well, it’s a hell of a time to be alive. After a brutalizing pandemic, fit with stay at home orders and government indecision, something else happened. The cold blooded murder of unarmed black man George Floyd by a white cop in Minneapolis has set off unprecedent protests demanding racial equality and an end to police violence against people of color.But instead of quelling these protests with actionable change, it appears the government is just spying on them. We’ve got evidence that now the infamous Military Industrial Complex and its surveillance superpowers are being deployed against protests across the country. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

If you’ve been listening to the news, chances are you’ve heard about it incessantly: contact tracing.But what is it exactly? And what are the surveillance and privacy issues surrounding it? Will yet another app that tracks your movements really be the key to ending the pandemic?Today we got Motherboard reporter Lorenzo Francheschi Bicchierai on the show to tell you everything you need to know about contact tracing. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.