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Child Exploitation Cyber Investigations

Release Date: 05/28/2025

Easy Prey

Everyone’s talking about AI these days, especially in cybersecurity. Sure, artificial intelligence can boost your defenses, but cybercriminals have noticed too. Now they're crafting phishing emails so believable it’s scary and finding clever paths around spam filters while zeroing in on vulnerabilities you didn’t even realize were there. Today, Aviad Hasnis joins the show. He's the CTO of Cynet Security and spent years running cybersecurity missions for the Israeli Defense Forces. Aviad’s here to help us figure out what the changing threat landscape really means, whether...

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Easy Prey

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Easy Prey

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Easy Prey

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Easy Prey

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Human Side of Fraud: Empathy, Education, & Evolution

Easy Prey

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Identity Is The New Security Perimeter

Easy Prey

Sometimes it feels like every new technology we adopt comes with a new risk we didn’t see coming. From AI and data breaches to phishing scams and ransomware, it's clear we live in a time when cybersecurity isn’t just a tech issue, it’s a human issue. In this episode, I talk with Jeff Reich, Executive Director of the Identity Defined Security Alliance. Jeff has been in the cybersecurity world since the early days, with decades of experience helping organizations protect what matters most. His passion for identity security and risk management runs deep, and he brings a thoughtful...

Your Car Is Spying On You What It’s Collecting and Who It’s Telling

Easy Prey

I used to think of my car as just a tool to get from point A to point B. But after this conversation, I can’t help but see it as something else entirely, a powerful data collection device that knows far more about me than I realized. From where I go and who I text to how I drive and even what’s on my phone, today’s vehicles are gathering a staggering amount of personal information. In this episode, I talk with Andrea Amico, the founder of . Andrea is one of the leading voices in automotive data privacy and someone who’s spent years uncovering the hidden ways cars collect, store,...

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Easy Prey

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Child Exploitation Cyber Investigations

Easy Prey

Technology is a double-edged sword. It can empower us, connect us, and solve problems, but it can also be used to exploit, manipulate, and harm. When it comes to protecting children online, that line gets especially thin. Digital forensics, AI-powered image classification, and global law enforcement collaboration are now essential tools for keeping families safe in a world that moves faster than most of us can keep up. Debbie Garner knows this world intimately. She’s a retired Special Agent in charge with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and former commander of the state’s Internet...

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Debbie Garner knows this world intimately. She’s a retired Special Agent in charge with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and former commander of the state’s Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. For years she led efforts to track down online predators and bring justice to survivors. These days she’s working in the private sector, serving on the boards of Raven and Revere Technologies, pushing for smarter tech solutions and stronger training to support those still on the front lines.

In this episode we talk about the growing problem of online child exploitation, the reality of underfunded cybercrime units and the ways technology is being used to fight back. Whether you’re a parent, an educator or just someone who cares about kids online, you need to hear this.

Show Notes:

[00:58] Debbie shares her law enforcement background over 30 years. She even worked undercover buying crack!
[02:19] She spent the last 8 years of her career as the Supervisor Special Agent in charge of GBI's Child Exploitation and Computer Crimes Unit.
[02:45] Now that she's retired from law enforcement, she works in the private sector with technology companies.
[05:36] It's become her passion, even in retirement, to help those who are victims of exploitation.
[07:09] Most children are victimized by someone they know. There's also plenty of predators online.
[08:55] There are multiple organizations that work on child exploitation investigations.
[10:53] People in law enforcement do tend to prioritize these types of crimes.
[12:12] We talk about how the investigations begin.
[13:53] Cases have increased from 2400 tips a year to over 30,000.
[15:17] There's never enough technology to keep up with the increase.
[16:41] RAVEN is a lobbying group to request additional funding from Congress.
[18:33] With over 30,000 tips last year Georgia made over 450 arrests.
[22:13] There's now technology that will help find CSAM on phones. There are also some amazing investigations on the dark web.
[25:15] OSINT is helping investigate and it's a collaborative community.
[27:55] Channels to report exploitation. Start with the platform, then National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, and law enforcement.
[31:34] Don't put images on the internet. Websites like Take It Down can help with images of underage people and Take It Down can help adults.
[33:43] Always mention if the person is underage when you make a report.
[34:10] Talk to your kids and start early with age appropriate conversations about CSAM.

Thanks for joining us on Easy Prey. Be sure to subscribe to our podcast on iTunes and leave a nice review.

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