PEBCAK Podcast: Information Security News by Some All Around Good People

Chris Louie
  • 4.9 (19)
  • Technology
  • Updated Weekly

Weekly Information Security News. Stay up to date on what’s going on in the InfoSec world in about 40 minutes. Join us for InfoSec news and stay for some friendly banter, guest interviews, gadget reviews, tech interview tips, and hilarious dad jokes! New episodes every Monday.

  1. 5d ago

    Episode 258 - Meta Hacked by AI Help Desk, Fired for Polymarket Futures, AI Layoff Hiring Boomerang, a Billion Mosquitoes

    Welcome to this week's episode of the PEBCAK Podcast!  We’ve got four amazing stories this week so sit back, relax, and keep being awesome!  Be sure to stick around for our Dad Joke of the Week. (DJOW) Follow us on Instagram @pebcakpodcast   Please share this podcast with someone you know!  It helps us grow the podcast and we really appreciate it!   Simple 6 signup link https://simple6.co/r/CFUR98   Meta's AI support bot was weaponized to hijack Instagram accounts, including the Obama White House page, by tricking it into adding attacker-controlled emails during password resets. https://x.com/zachxbt/status/2061251183675949365?s=46 https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/instagram-users-locked-out-after-meta-ai-abused-to-steal-accounts/ https://krebsonsecurity.com/2026/06/hackers-used-metas-ai-support-bot-to-seize-instagram-accounts/ Meta's AI customer support bot was socially engineered into resetting account passwords for targets, exposing the new attack surface that AI-powered support creates — and enabling hijacks that MFA would have blocked.   A Google security engineer was arrested and charged with insider trading after using confidential "Year in Search" data to pocket $1.2M on the prediction market Polymarket. https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/us-charges-google-security-engineer-with-polymarket-insider-trading/ Operating under the alias "AlphaRaccoon," Michele Spagnuolo went 22-for-23 on Google search trend bets using nonpublic internal data — marking the second high-profile Polymarket insider trading arrest this year, following a Special Forces soldier who bet on the Maduro raid he was part of.   New data shows 55% of companies regret their AI-driven layoffs, with half already quietly reversing them — the so-called "Layoff Boomerang." https://medium.com/@curiouser.ai/the-great-ai-layoff-boomerang-68e38c88fa7d Forrester, Gartner, and PwC data confirm the "replace humans with AI" thesis is failing: companies that cut aggressively are scrambling to rehire at higher cost, while firms that augmented their workers are seeing 3x revenue growth per employee.   Google's Verily is seeking EPA approval to release up to 64 million Wolbachia-infected male mosquitoes in Florida and California to crash disease-carrying mosquito populations. https://x.com/bulltheoryio/status/2060810332831129782?s=46 https://www.usatoday.com/story/graphics/2026/06/04/google-mosquito-release-florida-california/90384899007/ The Debug Project's sterile male mosquitoes mate with wild females but produce no viable eggs — a technique that's already shown 80–90% suppression of Aedes aegypti in prior trials and has the internet predictably losing its mind.   Dad Joke of the Week (DJOW)   Find the hosts on LinkedIn: Chris - https://www.linkedin.com/in/chlouie/ Glenn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/glennmedina/ Raja - https://www.linkedin.com/in/rajazkhalid/

    52 min

  2. Jun 1

    Episode 257 - YellowKey Update, Before Stuxnet - Fast16, Bricking Valorant Cheaters, Apple's Anti-Snatch Feature, Chickenpox Immunity

    Welcome to this week's episode of the PEBCAK Podcast!  We’ve got four amazing stories this week so sit back, relax, and keep being awesome!  Be sure to stick around for our Dad Joke of the Week. (DJOW) Follow us on Instagram @pebcakpodcast   Please share this podcast with someone you know!  It helps us grow the podcast and we really appreciate it!   Simple 6 signup link https://simple6.co/r/CFUR98   Microsoft releases a temporary mitigation script for "YellowKey," a BitLocker-bypassing Windows zero-day with no permanent fix yet https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/microsoft/microsoft-shares-mitigation-for-yellowkey-windows-zero-day/   Researchers uncover FAST16, a state-sponsored cyber-sabotage framework from 2005 that silently corrupted precision engineering calculations — predating Stuxnet by at least five years and linked to NSA tooling https://www.tomshardware.com/software/security-software/decades-old-pre-stuxnet-cyber-sabotage-tool-breaks-cover-nsa-listed-it-as-nothing-to-see-here-fast16-targeted-nuclear-reactors-dam-design-and-other-high-precision-civil-engineering-software-years-before-stuxnet-broke-cover https://www.wired.com/story/fast16-malware-stuxnet-precursor-iran-nuclear-attack/ https://www.sentinelone.com/labs/fast16-mystery-shadowbrokers-reference-reveals-high-precision-software-sabotage-5-years-before-stuxnet/   Riot Games clarifies its Vanguard anti-cheat doesn't brick PCs — it just renders $6,000 worth of DMA cheat hardware completely useless https://www.ign.com/articles/riot-games-says-it-would-not-and-cannot-use-vanguard-anti-cheat-to-brick-pcs-after-rumors-spread https://www.tweaktown.com/news/111774/valorants-vanguard-anti-cheat-now-destroys-dma-cheat-firmware/index.html https://x.com/dexerto/status/2057785616255860991   Apple is developing an "anti-snatch" feature that automatically locks an iPhone the moment sensors detect it's been ripped from a user's hand — and London thieves already prefer iPhones over Samsungs https://appleinsider.com/articles/26/05/27/rumored-anti-snatch-feature-will-automatically-lock-iphones-yanked-out-of-a-users-hand https://appleinsider.com/articles/25/11/18/london-thieves-snatching-iphones-but-dont-want-no-samsung   Dad Joke of the Week (DJOW)   Find the hosts on LinkedIn: Chris - https://www.linkedin.com/in/chlouie/ Brian - https://www.linkedin.com/in/briandeitch-sase/ Ben - https://www.linkedin.com/in/benjamincorll/

    51 min

  3. May 25

    Episode 256 - Busted by Bluetooth, Crypto ATMs Under Fire, Vibe Coding and the AI Model Showdown

    Welcome to this week's episode of the PEBCAK Podcast!  We’ve got four amazing stories this week so sit back, relax, and keep being awesome!  Be sure to stick around for our Dad Joke of the Week. (DJOW) Follow us on Instagram @pebcakpodcast   Please share this podcast with someone you know!  It helps us grow the podcast and we really appreciate it!   Simple 6 signup link https://simple6.co/r/CFUR98   Apple data and car Bluetooth signals help police identify suspect in crypto robbery https://www.forbes.com/sites/the-wiretap/2026/05/05/apple-subpoena-and-car-bluetooth-help-cops-unmask-crypto-robber-suspect/ Your phone and your car are witnesses — law enforcement used an Apple subpoena and Bluetooth signals from a connected vehicle to unmask a suspect in a physical cryptocurrency robbery, showing how everyday device data is increasingly being used to solve crimes.   FBI reports crypto ATM fraud complaints surged 23% in 2025, topping $388 million in losses https://www.ic3.gov/PSA/2026/PSA260515-2 Canada proposes a nationwide ban on crypto ATMs, calling them a primary tool for scammers https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/canada-crypto-atm-ban-scammers-9.7180642 Bitcoin Depot, North America's largest crypto ATM operator, files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy https://www.bankingdive.com/news/bitcoin-depot-bankruptcy-chapter-11-atm-wind-down/820755 Crypto ATMs are effectively becoming extinct — the FBI documented nearly $389 million in losses through kiosks in 2025, Canada is moving to ban them outright as a fraud-enabling infrastructure, and Bitcoin Depot (the largest operator in North America with 9,000+ machines) just filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, blaming mounting state regulations, litigation, and an unsustainable business model.   DataCamp breaks down Claude Opus 4.7 vs. GPT-5.5 across coding, reasoning, vision, and pricing https://www.datacamp.com/blog/gpt-5-5-vs-claude-opus-4-7 The AI model race between Anthropic and OpenAI is too close to call — Claude Opus 4.7 leads on software engineering benchmarks and visual reasoning while GPT-5.5 dominates terminal/DevOps workflows and advanced math, with output token pricing favoring Claude at $25 vs. $30 per million tokens.   Dad Joke of the Week (DJOW)   Find the hosts on LinkedIn: Chris - https://www.linkedin.com/in/chlouie/ Brian - https://www.linkedin.com/in/briandeitch-sase/ Cody - https://www.linkedin.com/in/cody123anderson/

    56 min

  4. May 18

    Episode 255 - No Keys Required: BitLocker Busted, Canvas Crushed, Forza Fumbles, World Cup 2026

    Welcome to this week's episode of the PEBCAK Podcast!  We’ve got four amazing stories this week so sit back, relax, and keep being awesome!  Be sure to stick around for our Dad Joke of the Week. (DJOW) Follow us on Instagram @pebcakpodcast   Please share this podcast with someone you know!  It helps us grow the podcast and we really appreciate it!   Cyb3r Operations https://www.cyb3roperations.com/   https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/windows-bitlocker-zero-day-gives-access-to-protected-drives-poc-released/ https://www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/cyber-security/microsoft-bitlocker-protected-drives-can-now-be-opened-with-just-some-files-on-a-usb-stick-yellowkey-zero-day-exploit-demonstrates-an-apparent-backdoor YellowKey Zero-Day: An unpatched BitLocker bypass dubbed "YellowKey" allows physical attackers to unlock encrypted Windows 11 and Server 2022/2025 drives using just a USB stick — no password or recovery key needed — and the frustrated researcher behind it is threatening more disclosures after Microsoft allegedly ignored previous reports. https://calmatters.org/economy/technology/2026/05/california-went-big-on-canvas-the-worst-happened/ https://databreaches.net/2026/05/08/one-size-does-not-fit-all-sometimes-victims-probably-should-pay-ransom/ https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/us-govt-seeks-instructure-testimony-on-massive-canvas-cyberattack/ Canvas Ransomware Attack: ShinyHunters breached education platform Canvas twice within a week, stealing data from an estimated 275 million users across nearly 9,000 institutions globally, disrupting final exams across California and beyond — and now the U.S. House Committee on Homeland Security is demanding Instructure executives testify, while analysts debate whether refusing to pay the initial ransom made the fallout far worse.    https://insider-gaming.com/forza-horizon-6-leak-drops-155-gb-content/ Forza Horizon 6 Leak: Playground Games accidentally uploaded the complete, unencrypted 155GB build of Forza Horizon 6 to Steam ten days before its May 19 release, making the full game available to pirates — and Playground has since issued lifetime bans to players who streamed the leaked footage.   https://www.rotowire.com/soccer/article/2026-world-cup-groups-full-group-by-group-preview-analysis-projections-and-dark-horses-100836 https://au.news.yahoo.com/head-knocks-ultra-violence-viral-231852371.html 2026 World Cup Preview: With the expanded 48-team tournament kicking off June 11 across the U.S., Canada, and Mexico, Spain, France, and England headline the favorites — but the new format means more upsets, more dark horses, and storylines ranging from Messi's likely final campaign to Iraq's return to the World Cup stage for the first time since 1986.   Dad Joke of the Week (DJOW)   Find the hosts on LinkedIn: Chris - https://www.linkedin.com/in/chlouie/ Brian - https://www.linkedin.com/in/briandeitch-sase/ Buck - https://www.linkedin.com/in/buck-rogers-9952446a/

    47 min

  5. May 11

    Episode 254 - JP Morgan Staffer's Rehearsed Lies, Real Swats Land Jail Time, 9 Seconds to Disaster When Curser Deletes Company, Canceled Flights

    Welcome to this week's episode of the PEBCAK Podcast!  We’ve got four amazing stories this week so sit back, relax, and keep being awesome!  Be sure to stick around for our Dad Joke of the Week. (DJOW) Follow us on Instagram @pebcakpodcast   Please share this podcast with someone you know!  It helps us grow the podcast and we really appreciate it!   Simple 6 signup link https://simple6.co/r/CFUR98   A former JP Morgan banker's sexual misconduct lawsuit against a female executive is unraveling after screenshots surfaced showing him apparently rehearsing nearly identical claims — with a male abuser at a different firm — on a legal AI chatbot 10 months earlier. https://www.ibtimes.co.uk/ex-jp-morgan-staffer-ai-chatbot-sexual-misconduct-allegations-1794786  https://www.firstpost.com/explainers/jp-morgan-abuse-case-why-chirayu-ranas-exchange-with-a-chatbot-is-under-scrutiny-14007221.html  https://www.wsj.com/business/jpmorgan-offered-1-million-settlement-before-sexual-assault-claims-went-viral-1be296a9 Romanian national Thomasz Szabo, who led an online swatting ring targeting over 75 public officials, journalists, and religious institutions, was sentenced to 4 years in federal prison. https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/romanian-leader-of-online-swatting-ring-gets-4-years-in-prison/ An AI coding agent (Cursor running Claude Opus 4.6) deleted a small software company's entire production database and all backups in just 9 seconds, prompting a wave of warnings about giving AI agents unchecked access to real-world infrastructure. https://www.darkreading.com/cloud-security/ais-so-smart-keep-deleting-production-databases  https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/apr/29/claude-ai-deletes-firm-database  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m0b_D2JgZgY  https://x.com/Mericamemed/status/2052282283101655281 Spirit Airlines began the monthslong process of dismantling the company in bankruptcy court, filing a $217 million wind-down budget after the biggest U.S. airline collapse in a generation left tens of thousands of passengers stranded and 17,000 employees out of work. https://www.cnbc.com/2026/05/05/spirit-airlines-bankruptcy-costs.html  Dad Joke of the Week (DJOW)   Find the hosts on LinkedIn: Chris - https://www.linkedin.com/in/chlouie/ Brian - https://www.linkedin.com/in/briandeitch-sase/ Scott - https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottmsavage/

    52 min

  6. May 4

    Episode 253 - Mississippi's Dry Spell, Crypto Scams at Sea, Why One Hacker Gang Is Breaking All the Rules, Cheeto's Health Hack

    Welcome to this week's episode of the PEBCAK Podcast!  We’ve got four amazing stories this week so sit back, relax, and keep being awesome!  Be sure to stick around for our Dad Joke of the Week. (DJOW) Follow us on Instagram @pebcakpodcast   Please share this podcast with someone you know!  It helps us grow the podcast and we really appreciate it!   Simple 6 signup link https://simple6.co/r/CFUR98   Mississippi's entire liquor supply chain ground to a halt after a contractor's botched software rollout left 170,000+ cases of alcohol stranded in a warehouse https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/technology/tech-news/one-of-americas-biggest-state-is-running-out-of-liquor-due-to-botched-up-it-upgrade/articleshow/130233165.cms   Scammers are impersonating Iranian authorities to extort crypto payments from ships stranded near the Strait of Hormuz https://www.straitstimes.com/world/middle-east/scam-messages-offering-ships-safe-transit-through-hormuz-security-firm-warns   A single ransomware group exploiting one firewall brand now accounts for nearly half of all cyber insurance claims https://www.insurancebusinessmag.com/us/news/cyber/one-ransomware-crew-now-drives-half-of-all-cyber-claims-atbay-573139.aspx https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/kyber-ransomware-gang-toys-with-post-quantum-encryption-on-windows/   Food engineers deliberately design snacks like Cheetos to trick your brain into thinking you're eating nothing at all https://acrossthemargin.com/vanishing-caloric-density/   Dad Joke of the Week (DJOW)   Find the hosts on LinkedIn: Chris - https://www.linkedin.com/in/chlouie/ Brian - https://www.linkedin.com/in/briandeitch-sase/ Glenn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/glennmedina/ Ben - https://www.linkedin.com/in/benjamincorll/

    51 min

  7. Apr 27

    Episode 252 - Prediction Market Manipulation, Apple Patches Signal Notification Bug, AI Training on Dead Companies Data, Best NES Games

    Welcome to this week's episode of the PEBCAK Podcast!  We’ve got four amazing stories this week so sit back, relax, and keep being awesome!  Be sure to stick around for our Dad Joke of the Week. (DJOW) Follow us on Instagram @pebcakpodcast   Please share this podcast with someone you know!  It helps us grow the podcast and we really appreciate it!   Simple 6 signup link https://simple6.co/r/CFUR98   CISA orders immediate patching for Windows Defender Zero Day https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/cisa-orders-feds-to-patch-microsoft-defender-flaw-exploited-in-zero-day-attacks/ https://x.com/k1rallik/status/2044844102127165912?s=20    Ransomware negotiator pleads guilty to helping ransomware gangs https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/former-ransomware-negotiator-pleads-guilty-to-blackcat-attacks/   Hairdryer used to win Polymarket bet https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/someone-allegedly-used-a-hairdryer-to-rig-polymarket-weather-bets-155312411.html  https://www.cnbc.com/2026/04/23/doj-soldier-polymarket-bets-venezuela-maduro.html   Apple patches Signal notification bug https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/apple-fixes-ios-bug-that-retained-deleted-notification-data/   AI is training on data from dead companies https://www.forbes.com/sites/annatong/2026/04/16/ais-new-training-data-your-old-work-slacks-and-emails/   Best NES games https://nekorandom.com/2022/07/04/fun-fact-why-mike-tyson-was-replaced-in-punch-out/   Dad Joke of the Week (DJOW)   Find the hosts on LinkedIn: Chris - https://www.linkedin.com/in/chlouie/ Brian - https://www.linkedin.com/in/briandeitch-sase/ Glenn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/glennmedina/

    53 min

  8. Apr 20

    Episode 251 - Tesla Disables Hacked FSD Subscriptions, Cryptocurrency Theft Roundup, Fake Ledger Wallets, CEO Uses ChatGPT for Fraud, SF and AZ Food Talk

    Welcome to this week's episode of the PEBCAK Podcast!  We’ve got four amazing stories this week so sit back, relax, and keep being awesome!  Be sure to stick around for our Dad Joke of the Week. (DJOW) Follow us on Instagram @pebcakpodcast   Please share this podcast with someone you know!  It helps us grow the podcast and we really appreciate it!   Simple 6 signup link https://simple6.co/r/CFUR98   Tesla disables 100,000 hacked FSD subscriptions https://www.autoevolution.com/news/no-more-hacking-tesla-disables-the-fsd-used-illegally-in-over-100000-cars-268418.html   Crypto theft roundup https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/fake-ledger-live-app-on-apples-app-store-stole-95m-in-crypto/  https://x.com/tftc21/status/2041551582383505649?s=46  https://www.crypto-news-flash.com/fake-ledger-device-bought-on-chinese-marketplace-raises-fresh-hardware-wallet-alarm/    CEO uses ChatGPT to commit fraud https://fortune.com/2026/03/17/krafton-subnautica-chatgpt-delaware-court-ruling-ceo-reinstated/   Brian's food travels https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g60713-d370412-Reviews-Restaurant_Gary_Danko-San_Francisco_California.html https://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/food-drink/new-tempe-restaurant-filthy-animal-left-us-lost-in-the-woods-21734957/   Dad Joke of the Week (DJOW)   Find the hosts on LinkedIn: Chris - https://www.linkedin.com/in/chlouie/ Brian - https://www.linkedin.com/in/briandeitch-sase/ Glenn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/glennmedina/

    52 min
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Weekly Information Security News. Stay up to date on what’s going on in the InfoSec world in about 40 minutes. Join us for InfoSec news and stay for some friendly banter, guest interviews, gadget reviews, tech interview tips, and hilarious dad jokes! New episodes every Monday.

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