Cosmic brownie crimes.
This week, hosts of N2K CyberWire Maria Varmazis and Dave Bittner alongside Joe Carrigan are discussing the latest in social engineering scams, phishing schemes, and criminal exploits that are making headlines. We start with some follow-up after a listener asks Joe to finally reveal the backpack that's become a recurring character on the show—and whether it's really as airport-infeding as everyone says. Joe covers Myanmar's approval of the death penalty for convicted scammers and shares a real-world fraud case involving forged Little Debbie snack deliveries that shows scams don't always happen online. Maria explores the rise in foreclosure rescue and equity-stripping scams, where fraudsters target financially vulnerable homeowners and attempt to steal their money—or even their homes. Dave breaks down new research showing how AI-powered phone farms are making it easier than ever for scammers to automate fraud, manage hundreds of fake accounts, and scale their operations with minimal technical skill. Our Catch of the Day is on a scam-baiting exchange featuring an unforgettable tale of a supposed two-timing "Barb Johnson" that quickly spirals into absurdity.
Resources and links to stories:
- Kitchen Sink Backpack
- Giant Backpack
- Your Backpack Got Worse On Purpose
- Burma approves death penalty for scammers months after FBI's $8 billion crypto crackdown
- Little Debbie snack fraud investigation leads to arrest of West Virginia man, who allegedly forged records for deliveries that never happened
- As foreclosures increase, so do warnings about some self-proclaimed 'home savers'
- Researchers Warn of AI-Enhanced Phone Fraud Ecosystem
- That Twotiming B**ch Barb Johnson
Have a Catch of the Day you'd like to share? Email it to us at hackinghumans@n2k.com.
