The Ransomware War
Easy Prey
Ransomware isn’t a lone hacker in a hoodie. It’s an entire criminal industry complete with developers, brokers, and money launderers working together like a dark tech startup. And while these groups constantly evolve, so do the tools and partnerships aimed at stopping them before they strike. My guest today is Cynthia Kaiser, former Deputy Assistant Director of the FBI’s Cyber Division and now the Head of the Ransomware Research Center at Halcyon. After two decades investigating global cyber threats and briefing top government leaders, she’s now focused on prevention and building...
info_outline
Opportunistic Crimes
Easy Prey
Criminals are always adapting. Whether it’s copper wiring stripped from job sites or porch pirates grabbing deliveries in broad daylight, they keep finding new ways to take what isn’t theirs. But maybe prevention isn’t about harsher punishment or more cameras. Maybe it’s about smarter design and understanding what drives people to steal in the first place. My guest today is Dr. Ben Stickle, a professor of criminal justice at Middle Tennessee State University and one of the country’s top researchers on property crime. Before entering academia, he worked in law enforcement, which gives...
info_outline
Post Scam Guidebook
Easy Prey
Fraud usually gets talked about in numbers like how much money was stolen, how many people were affected, how many cases got filed. But behind every one of those numbers is a person who’s been blindsided, manipulated, or left trying to rebuild trust in others and in themselves. This episode shifts the focus back to those human stories and the fight to protect them. My guest, Freddie Massimi, has spent more than a decade helping scam victims find both financial and emotional recovery, bringing empathy and understanding to a field that too often feels cold and procedural. As a certified...
info_outline
Can You Trust Anything Online
Easy Prey
You think you’d never fall for a scam until you meet someone like Kitboga. He’s a software engineer who’s turned his curiosity about online fraud into a full-time mission to outsmart scammers and protect the people they target. His YouTube channel, The Kitboga Show, has millions of followers and nearly a billion views, thanks to his mix of humor, empathy, and clever ways of exposing how scams really work. In our conversation, Kit opens up about how this all started, what it’s really like to spend hours pretending to be a scam victim, and how organized crime has turned fraud into a...
info_outline
Real Time Fraud Detection
Easy Prey
Everywhere you turn, someone’s trying to fake something like an image, a voice, or even an entire identity. With AI tools now in almost anyone’s hands, it takes minutes, not days, to create a convincing fake. That’s changed the game for both sides. The fraudsters have new weapons, and the rest of us are scrambling to keep up. The real question now isn’t just how to stop scams, but how to know who or what to trust online. My guest today, Bala Kumar, spends his days on the front lines of that battle. He’s the Chief Product and Technology Officer at Jumio, a company working to make...
info_outline
Child Predator Tactics
Easy Prey
Kids spend more time online than ever, and for the most part it feels normal. They’re gaming, watching videos, and chatting with friends. But hidden in those same spaces are adults who know how to pose as kids, build trust, and push conversations into dangerous territory. Parents might think it couldn’t happen to their child, yet detectives see how quickly an “innocent” interaction can turn into grooming or extortion. That’s the world Detective Seth Cockerham works in every day. He’s been in law enforcement in Texas for close to a decade, and the last few years have been dedicated...
info_outline
Identity Trafficking
Easy Prey
Some people are willing to hand over their identities for cash, while organized fraudsters are lining up to buy them. What used to be a matter of stolen credit cards has turned into a global marketplace where personal details fuel large-scale fraud. Now with AI, automation, and deepfakes making impersonation easier than ever, it’s becoming much more difficult to protect identities. To understand how we got here and what can be done, I spoke with Ofer Friedman, Chief Business Development Officer at AU10TIX. Ofer has spent more than 15 years in the identity verification and compliance...
info_outline
Technology, Trust & Time
Easy Prey
Technology is moving faster than our ability to process its impact, forcing us to question trust, motivation, and the value of our time. Few people have had a closer view of those shifts than Esther Dyson. With a background in economics from Harvard, Esther built a career as a journalist, author, commentator, investor, and philanthropist, with a unique ability to spot patterns across industries and challenge assumptions before they become mainstream. She is the executive founder of Wellville, a ten-year nonprofit project dedicated to improving equitable well-being in communities across the...
info_outline
The Global Scam Battle
Easy Prey
Cybercrime continues to evolve in sophistication and scale, with attackers running their operations much like businesses. From ransomware gangs with customer support desks to AI-generated phishing campaigns that erase traditional red flags, scams are becoming harder to detect and stop. In this episode, David Bittner, host of the CyberWire Daily Podcast, shares his perspective on the changing landscape of fraud and cyberattacks. Drawing on his background in media, theater, and podcasting, as well as years of reporting on security issues, he explains how both criminals and defenders are using...
info_outline
AI Supercharges Scams
Easy Prey
Cybercriminals are accelerating their attacks in ways that weren’t possible a few years ago. Artificial intelligence is giving them the ability to spin up phishing campaigns, voice clones, and deepfakes in minutes instead of days. As a result, the gap between what’s genuine and what’s fake is closing fast, making it harder for both individuals and organizations to defend themselves. I’m thrilled to welcome Brett Winterford, Vice President of Okta Threat Intelligence. Brett has had a front row seat to these changes. His team analyzes identity-based attacks and delivers insights to help...
info_outlineSome people are willing to hand over their identities for cash, while organized fraudsters are lining up to buy them. What used to be a matter of stolen credit cards has turned into a global marketplace where personal details fuel large-scale fraud. Now with AI, automation, and deepfakes making impersonation easier than ever, it’s becoming much more difficult to protect identities.
To understand how we got here and what can be done, I spoke with Ofer Friedman, Chief Business Development Officer at AU10TIX. Ofer has spent more than 15 years in the identity verification and compliance world, working with companies like PayPal, Google, Uber, and Saxo Bank. He’s seen the evolution from basic ID checks to today’s sophisticated fraud-as-a-service platforms, where attackers can buy stolen data cheaply, sometimes for just a few dozen dollars, and use it to launch real-time, undetectable attacks.
Ofer explains why traditional approaches like uploading a photo of your ID are no longer enough, and why privacy, in practice, is already gone. He walks through the “minefield strategy” of fraud prevention, where businesses must layer multiple defenses like device, network, and behavioral indicators. We also talk about the rise of digital IDs, the coming challenge of quantum computing, and why regulators and service providers, not consumers, are now the ones who must shoulder the responsibility of protecting identities.
Show Notes:
- [01:00] Ofer explains his role in forecasting fraud trends and designing solutions, drawing from years in identity verification and compliance.
- [03:32] The conversation turns to people selling their identities, with fraudsters buying because impersonation is easier than ever.
- [05:18] Ofer describes how sales happen in encrypted channels like Telegram or Discord, often targeting desperate individuals.
- [07:07] He calls these sellers “identity mules,” noting they only receive a few dozen dollars per transaction.
- [08:20] With billions of stolen data points in circulation, there’s more identity data than people, making personal data cheap and plentiful.
- [09:00] Regulations require minimal information, often just basic ID details and a selfie, which makes fraud easier to attempt.
- [11:00] Deepfakes and injection attacks undermine even live ID checks, giving rise to fraud-as-a-service platforms that automate attacks.
- [13:00] New age verification laws in the US and UK highlight the growing tension between privacy and regulation.
- [15:53] Ofer outlines the “minefield strategy,” where layered defenses (ID, device, network, behavior) are needed since no single tool is sufficient.
- [18:46] The discussion shifts to how fraud is global, not just American, and why digital IDs may offer better protection though not without flaws.
- [21:45] Fraud is evolving quickly with automation, enabling fraudsters to launch massive, randomized attacks.
- [29:03] Ofer explains the three lines of defense: live checks, collateral risk factors, and behavioral monitoring.
- [31:40] He stresses that privacy is effectively dead, as the balance between privacy and security always favors security.
- [34:47] Consumer education won’t stop fraud—technology and companies must take the lead in identity protection.
- [39:14] Identity verification and cybersecurity are merging into one process that scrutinizes users everywhere online.
- [45:34] The rise of agentic AI could reduce friction in transactions, but desensitization means people accept more scrutiny over time.
- [47:24] Ofer argues regulations need to evolve, calling for service providers to be rated and held to higher standards.
- [50:36] He reflects that we’re moving into a new era where deepfakes and impersonation will affect not just finances but media, politics, and trust itself.
- [52:05] Ofer closes with advice on evaluating identity verification vendors, emphasizing layered defenses and transparency.
Thanks for joining us on Easy Prey. Be sure to subscribe to our podcast on iTunes and leave a nice review.