How Hacks Happen
Hacks, scams, cyber crimes, and other shenanigans explored and explained. Presented by cyber security teacher and digital forensics specialist Michele Bousquet.
Episodes
Is your identity at risk? And what would you do if someone was using it to take out credit cards, steal your tax refund, or even raid your bank account? Enjoy this replay of interviews with Tiffany, Pete, and Astrid, three victims of identity theft. Even though this episode originally aired in 2022, the same lessons remain. Listen to hear about how each of the three discovered the fraud, what they did to reverse the damage, and wha...
When over 100,000 Bitcoin went missing in 2016, no one suspected the culprits: a quiet, mild-mannered developer and his ostentatious entrepreneur/rapper wife with a wacky social media presence. Meet Razzlekhan and Dutch, the most unlikely thieves in the history of crime.
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Why is Andrew Tate so popular with young men? With his sports cars and his obvious wealth, Tate has built a significant following out of his admittedly silly 'alpha male' rants. But behind the flashy lifestyle lies a web of controversy, including serious criminal charges. From promising young men financial independence and all the women they can handle, to the humiliations of a pro-trans hack and getting slapped down by a...
Instagram star Hushpuppi had over 2 million followers. With his amazing lifestyle filled with Ferraris and Rolls Royces and private jets, dressed head-to-toe in Gucci and Versace and Fendi, Hushpuppi seemed to have it all. But Hushpuppi's lifestyle was built on a massive pile of fraud, $2 billion dollar's worth, that eventually landed him in prison.
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A Blackberry phone as a hacking tool?! For our April Fool's Day episode, we bring you an exclusive interview with hacking genius Dave the Barber, who leveraged a freak accident with a Blackberry into a hack that can compromise any device until the end of time.
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Want to hang out with supermodels on the beach? That's the dream that Billy McFarland sold in 2017 when he advertised Fyre Festival, an outdoor music concert in the Bahamas. Attendees were promised beautiful beaches, live music, comfy villas, gourmet meals, and supermodels around every corner. Instead, they got a gravel parking lot, soggy tents, cheese sandwiches, and no music. And no supermodels, either.
What went wrong with F...
When a scam caller knows everything about you--your address, social security number, bank account--how do they know? There isn't some super powerful hacker ring with its own call center. Your data is actually stolen at one end of the internet, goes on a trip through hacker forums and dark web stashes, and reappears in a neat spreadsheet for a call center. The more you know about how your data is breached, sold, and aggregated,...
Let's explore the technology behind audio and music AI, and how it makes use of some cool math concepts to bring us convincing and realistic voices and music. Hear some actual AI-generated tunes, and find out how "latent space" changed the way AI generates sounds and music.
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Trump pardoned Ross Ulbricht after he served 12 years of his life sentence. In light of this news, we decided to replay our 2023 episode on the Silk Road website, which sold recreational drugs and other illegal items from 2011 to 2013. Was Trump's pardon the right move? We'll let you form your own opinion.
Everyday AI: Your daily guide to grown with Generative AICan't keep up with AI? We've got you. Ever...
AI makes our lives more convenient in so many ways, but it also gives scammers the same conveniences. Host Michele Bousquet explains how scammers use AI audio, video, and text to better fool their victims.
Everyday AI: Your daily guide to grown with Generative AICan't keep up with AI? We've got you. Everyday AI helps you keep up and get ahead.
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The AI model Deepseek was all over the news in January 2025. Deepseek's developers claimed its costs to develop and run were a fraction of the costs for large popular AI models, which caused a big disruption in the stock market. But how true are these claims? In the first of a three-part series on AI, host Michele Bousquet dives in and give Deepseek a spin, and debunks some of the hype around this new export from China.
Resourc...
With so many social security breaches, we return to the original scene of the crime: the Equifax Breach of 2017. Enjoy this replay of one of our most popular episodes, where you'll learn about common hacking techniques, how routers work and why they're so important, and the most basic of cybersecurity measures like patch plans.
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They're the kinds of cousins you wish you didn't have, but you don't really have a choice. What's the difference between hacks and scams, and how do they work together to part you from your valuables like personal information and money? In this episode, we look at the similarities and differences between these shady cousins, and how you can keep them from doing their dirty work.
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In the wake of the devastating California wildfires, conspiracy theories abound, some of them with no basis in fact. Just after her Pasadena home was threatened by the fires, author Su Falcon ran into a wall of disinformation in social media. Find out what she did about it, and how you can help keep the internet free of this kind of destructive garbage.
Resources
- Website: California Fire Facts
- Website: Watch Duty
- Website:...
2025 promises to be an exciting year for scammers. From ridiculous job offers to the colorful family of Apple ID scams, join us on a whirlwind tour of schemes designed to part you and your money.
Everyday AI: Your daily guide to grown with Generative AICan't keep up with AI? We've got you. Everyday AI helps you keep up and get ahead.
Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify
Join our Patreon to lis...
The Honey tool has been exposed as a scam, after dozens of YouTube influencers heavily promoted it. Honey was supposed to save online shoppers money by finding discount codes, but how could it make money doing that? By stealing from its own advertisers, of course! Find out how Honey did it, how they got exposed, and what the future holds for Honey's funny money and the stain upon its parent company PayPal.
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Romance scams aren't the only goals of a catfish. The catfish needs some way to get all that money delivered into their hands without leaving a trail. To accomplish this, they recruit unwitting victims into laundering their money. Meet Alice, who unknowingly becomes a money mule for Parker the Catfish.
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How do catfish convince victims to send money? In this second of a three-part series on catfishing, we take a tour of the many tricks romance scammers use to separate victims from their hearts, and their cash.
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Can't keep up with AI? We've got you. Everyday AI helps you keep up and...
Catfishing scams have reached new heights, particularly romance scams. But how do they get away with it? This first of a three-part series on catfishing explores the technology these scammers use to fool their victims.
Resources
- The man who "sold" The Brooklyn Bridge, Statue of Liberty, and Ulysses Grant's tomb
- All About Ethel Kennedy's 34 Grandchildren
- Catfished YouTube Channel
Hackers have been releasing password leaks for years. But what exactly is a password leak, and should you be concerned? In this episode of How Hacks Happen, we look at how password security has changed over the years, and how you can keep yourself safe in the ever-changing world of online security.
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