x

75% of people globally want unbiased news (Pew Research) but are concerned they're not getting that.

Get balanced coverage with Symby. See how stories are covered across diverse outlets and spot when one side covers a story the other skips.

PODCAST

The IT Privacy and Security Weekly Update.

R. Prescott Stearns Jr.

Into year five for this award-winning, light-hearted, lightweight IT privacy and security podcast that spans the globe in terms of issues covered with topics that draw in everyone from executive, to newbie, to tech specialist. Your investment of between 15 and 20 minutes a week will bring you up to speed on half a dozen current IT privacy and security stories from around the world to help you improve the management of your own privacy and security.

news tech news

All Episodes

00:16:12

EP 236.5 Deep dive - Unexplainable disappearances and...

The IT Privacy and Security Weekly Update. ·

2025/04/03

1. What are some recent major cryptocurrency hacks, and how were they carried out?High-profile crypto breaches include Bybit (~$1.5B), Ronin Network ($625M), and Poly Network ($611M). Attackers exploited vulnerabilities via social engineering (notably in the Bybit case), smart contract flaws, phishing, and targeted blockchain bridges. State-backed groups are increasingly active in this space.2. How is malware evolving to bypass traditional antivirus tools, and what languages are favored by

en-us

00:19:32

Unexplainable disappearances and The IT Privacy and...

The IT Privacy and Security Weekly Update. ·

2025/04/02

EP 236 For the Biggest Crypto Hacks it turns out “HODL” doesn’t protect you from miscreants with social engineering degrees.Hackers are now coding in Rust and Go, because multilingual malware is harder to catch.An esteemed University Computer Scientist simply disappears. (See if you can pick up on the clues.)Anthropic expands into AI workplace cleaning, but before you get too excited, they're only sweeping offices for now.Cloudflare slams the door making one well known transfer protocol

en-us

00:15:47

EP 235.5 Deep Dive. The IT Privacy and Security...

The IT Privacy and Security Weekly Update. ·

2025/03/27

Privacy Risks of 23andMe BankruptcyA breach impacting 7 million users, coupled with lawsuits and financial distress, means 23andMe’s 15 million genetic profiles could be sold or misused under a new buyer. The California Attorney General has urged users to delete their data and destroy physical samples, highlighting the vulnerability of storing sensitive genetic information with for‑profit entities under financial strain.Clearview AI’s Data Acquisition AttemptsClearview AI tried to buy a massive

en-us

00:19:05

The IT Privacy and Security Weekly Update and a Gene...

The IT Privacy and Security Weekly Update. ·

2025/03/26

EP 235 The IT Privacy and Security Weekly Update and a Gene Genie for the Week Ending March 25th., 20253/25/20250 CommentsEP 235. - click the pic to hear the podcast -DNA of 15 Million People For Sale. Turns out your great-great-grandparents' DNA is now a going-out-of-business clearance sale!"Clearview Tried to Buy Social Security Numbers and Mugshots. Shopping list: milk, eggs, 690 million arrest records, and a side of your soul.Hungary Uses Facial Recognition to Suppress a Pride

en-us

00:17:08

EP 234.5 Deep Dive. The IT Privacy and Security...

The IT Privacy and Security Weekly Update. ·

2025/03/20

1. Why Should I Change My Passwords Immediately?Recent studies show that around 50% of online passwords are already compromised, and 41% of successful logins involve breached credentials. Common passwords like “123456” and password reuse make it easy for cybercriminals—especially with automated bots—to access multiple accounts. Changing passwords and using unique, strong credentials with multi-factor authentication is critical for security.Starting March 28th, all Alexa requests will be processed in

en-us

00:17:09

For the other 50%. The IT Privacy and Security Weekly...

The IT Privacy and Security Weekly Update. ·

2025/03/19

EP 234For the other 50%. The IT Privacy and Security Weekly Update for the Week Ending March 18th., 20253/18/20250 CommentsEP 234- click the pic to hear the podcast -For our first story, Apparently there’s a 50% chance your password is headlining a hacker convention. Perhaps it's time to change up from ‘123456' (still the most commonly used password).Starting On March 28, Everything You Say To Your Echo Will Be Sent To Amazon. Alexa’s new motto: ‘Anything you say can and will be used—to

en-us

00:19:22

Deep Dive. Keep it Safe. Featuring 21 Crypto scams to...

The IT Privacy and Security Weekly Update. ·

2025/03/13

EP 233.5 Key Cryptocurrency Threats & ScamsIn 2025, crypto remains a hotspot for scams like Ponzi schemes, fake ICOs, pump-and-dumps, phishing attacks, and malicious wallets or exchanges designed to steal funds. Social media is often used for deceptive giveaways, impersonations, and investment scams. Other risks include fake mining operations, rug pulls, fraudulent apps, SIM swapping, and impostor tech support.AI Skills Demand in the Tech Job MarketAI expertise is increasingly sought after, with

en-us

00:18:40

Keep it Safe. The IT Privacy and Security Weekly...

The IT Privacy and Security Weekly Update. ·

2025/03/12

EP 233This week... is seized Crypto Linked to LastPass? Feds pocket $23M in hot crypto—but with hackers still sitting on hundreds of millions, it’s like finding loose change in the couch.Signal’s boss says our ‘magic AI butler’ needs root access to everything. What could possibly go wrong?AI is Reshaping Tech Jobs and with nearly one in four tech gigs demanding AI skills, either learn to talk to robots or prepare to serve them coffee."Your Bluetooth toaster might secretly be dialing up

en-us

00:18:56

EP 232.5 Deep Dive - See for Miles and Miles with The...

The IT Privacy and Security Weekly Update. ·

2025/03/06

How did Microsoft's Copilot expose private GitHub repositories, and what are the risks?Copilot accessed over 20,000 private GitHub repositories due to cached data from when they were public. Even after repos were made private, Copilot could still generate responses using this cached data, risking exposure of sensitive information like credentials and corporate secrets.What is the "nRootTag" exploit in Apple's Find My network?The "nRootTag" exploit allows attackers to

en-us

00:16:48

EP 232 You can see for Miles and Miles with The IT...

The IT Privacy and Security Weekly Update. ·

2025/03/05

This week: Microsoft’s Copilot is living up to its name—because apparently, once it gets a glimpse of your code, it just can't unsee it.Hackers just turned every Bluetooth device into an involuntary AirTag—so congrats, your wireless headphones are now a tracking device.The UK wants a backdoor to look into iCloud, and the US just responded with a very diplomatic “absolutely not.”Sweden wanted a backdoor, but Signal ghosted them instead—because encryption doesn’t do toxic relationships.The US was

en-us

00:16:46

EP 231.5 The Deep Dive into The IT Privacy and...

The IT Privacy and Security Weekly Update. ·

2025/02/27

Which AI chatbots pose the biggest privacy risks, and what data are they collecting and sharing?A recent study revealed that all top ten AI chatbots on the Apple App Store collect user data, with 30% sharing it with third parties for advertising or measurement. Specific incidents include an AI chatbot named WotNot exposing 346,000 sensitive customer files and ChatGPT facing temporary bans over the use of personal data for model training without user consent. The advice is to treat chatbots like

en-us

00:18:49

The IT Privacy and Security Weekly Update for the...

The IT Privacy and Security Weekly Update. ·

2025/02/26

EP 231 This week we wonder which chatbot takes "sharing is caring" a little too far. Turns out some of them are spilling secrets faster than the office gossip at happy hour.Apple just told the UK, ‘You want a backdoor? Fine—we’ll just remove the whole door.France wants VPNs to stop streaming soccer pirates—because obviously the best way to protect privacy is to ban it entirely.California’s cutting-edge privacy strategy? Actually enforcing the law. Who knew that was an option?Microsoft’s

en-us

00:19:14

EP 230.5 Deep Dive - The 'Secrets' of the IT Privacy...

The IT Privacy and Security Weekly Update. ·

2025/02/20

1. What happened with Elon Musk's DOGE (.gov) website, and why is it significant?DOGE's official website, doge.gov, suffered a significant security breach due to a glaring vulnerability. The site's database was accessible and editable by the public because it was built on Cloudflare Pages instead of secure government servers. This allowed unauthorized individuals to modify content, highlighting a lack of stringent cybersecurity measures in government websites managed by DOGE. It

en-us

00:15:50

EP 230 The 'Secrets' of the IT Privacy and Security...

The IT Privacy and Security Weekly Update. ·

2025/02/19

In this week's update: Musk's DOGE website gets more editing than his tweets.Employees sharing secrets with AI chatbots prove humans haven't learned anything from social media oversharing.South Korea puts DeepSeek in the digital doghouse until it learns to play nice with privacy rules.Chinese hackers show that even after sanctions, you can't stop a Salt Typhoon with an umbrella.Apple's privacy features are too private for Germany's taste - plot twist nobody saw

en-us

00:12:07

EP 229.5 Deep Dive into Trashed; IT Privacy and...

The IT Privacy and Security Weekly Update. ·

2025/02/13

Frequently Asked Questions: Privacy, Security, and the State of Tech (Early 2025)1. What is "SparkCat" and why is it significant?SparkCat is malware discovered hiding in both the Apple App Store and Google Play. It uses optical character recognition (OCR) to scan users' photo galleries for cryptocurrency wallet recovery phrases and uploads them to attacker-controlled servers. Over 242,000 Android users downloaded infected apps. It highlights the evolving sophistication of malware and

en-us

00:17:01

Trashed. The IT Privacy and Security Weekly Update...

The IT Privacy and Security Weekly Update. ·

2025/02/12

Episode 229If your seed phrase was in your photo gallery, congratulations! You might have just funded North Korea's next Missile launch.The UK government just asked Apple to make privacy optional—because nothing says "secure" like a government-mandated security hole.A man wants to buy an entire rubbish tip to find his lost Bitcoin hard drive—because sometimes, your financial future is literally garbage.The US is considering banning a Chinese AI app, proving once again that if it’s

en-us

00:15:54

EP 228.5 Deep Dive The IT Privacy and Security Weekly...

The IT Privacy and Security Weekly Update. ·

2025/02/06

What is the primary concern regarding the use of WhatsApp and other encrypted messaging apps recently?Recent reports indicate that spyware, specifically "Graphite," has been used to target journalists and civil society members through zero-click attacks on encrypted apps like WhatsApp, Telegram, and Signal. This means that these apps are not as secure as previously thought, even though they employ end-to-end encryption. The spyware can infect devices without any user interaction and

en-us

00:14:50

EP 228 The IT Privacy and Security Weekly Update for...

The IT Privacy and Security Weekly Update. ·

2025/02/05

First, for some, it looks like WhatsApp chats weren’t just end-to-end encrypted—they also came with a side of espionage.Then... your heart monitor might be more interested in Beijing than in your beats per minute.deepseek AI Blocked in Italy & Taiwan, Welcomed in India – "Two countries said ‘no way,’ one said ‘namaste’—deepseek’s global tour has some mixed reviews."And what happens when your AI chatbot leaks more secrets than a reality TV star’s DMs.Senator Hawley’s AI Ban Proposal –

en-us

00:20:48

EP 227.5 Deep Dive - 21 Attack Types and The IT...

The IT Privacy and Security Weekly Update. ·

2025/01/30

What is "surveillance pricing" and how does it affect me? Surveillance pricing is a practice where online retailers adjust prices based on your personal data, such as location, browsing history, and demographics. Companies collect data like mouse movements and items left in your shopping cart to determine what you're likely willing to pay. This can lead to different individuals being offered varying prices for the same product. To mitigate this, consider using VPNs, browser extensions

en-us

00:19:05

21 Attack Types and The IT Privacy and Security...

The IT Privacy and Security Weekly Update. ·

2025/01/29

EP 227In this week's update we present 21 Cyber attacks and a self defense program to stop and drop every single one of them.Shopping online? Your browsing habits might be telling stores you're willing to pay double.Congratulations to Subaru owners as the latest stars in ‘Hack My Ride.’Meta’s new AI buddy knows your secrets—and nope, there’s no "off" button for this overshare.The FBI just discovered that the Constitution wasn’t keen on them peeking at your emails without a

en-us

324 results

Similar Podcasts

Expres Ráno

Expres FM

PBS News Hour - Full Show

PBS NewsHour

CD Voice

China Daily

Israel Today: Ongoing War Report

Noa Levi

Jeffrey Epstein: The Coverup Chronicles

Bobby Capucci