The AI, Privacy, and Security Weekly Update

R. Prescott Stearns Jr.
  • 4.5 (4)
  • Tech News
  • Updated Weekly

Into year 7 for this award-winning, light-hearted, lightweight AI privacy and security podcast that spans the globe in terms of issues covered, with topics that draw in everyone from executive to newbie, to tech specialist. For season 7, we've renamed the IT Privacy and Security Weekly Update to the AI, Privacy, and Security Weekly Update to better reflect the content. Your investment of between 15 and 20 minutes a week will bring you up to speed on half a dozen current AI privacy and security stories from around the world to help you improve the management of your own privacy and security.

  1. 4h ago

    Bullies, and the AI, Privacy, and Security Weekly update for the week ending June 23rd., 2026

    Episode 297 The U.S. government gave one of America's most important AI companies 90 minutes to shut off its best models - and the reason they gave keeps changing. The real story behind the Anthropic ban has nothing to do with a jailbreak - and everything to do with autonomous weapons and who gets to say no to the Pentagon. The FBI just seized thirteen websites posing as consulting firms - and the fake recruiters behind them may have already messaged someone you know. Hackers spent two months inside Novo Nordisk's systems and walked out with something new: the company's AI models themselves. Your next smartphone is going to cost significantly more - not because of tariffs, but because AI data centers ate all the memory chips. Sixty percent of what TikTok serves to brand new accounts is AI-generated slop - and it's worse when the account belongs to a child. The war in Ukraine has become the world's first live demonstration of AI-assisted combat, and the people planning the next conflict are paying very close attention. Meta is quietly lobbying Congress right now to make it legally impossible for families to sue the company when its algorithms harm their children - and almost nobody is talking about it. This has been a week where the people with the most power moved fastest and quietest - in government backrooms, in corporate lobbying offices, on battlefield drone feeds, and in the recommendation engines shaping what our kids see. Some of these stories are alarming. Some are clarifying. All of them deserve your attention. Let's get into it. Find the full transcript to this podcast here.

    23 min
  2. EP 296. Deep Dive. "Recognized" by The AI, Privacy, and Security Weekly Update for the Week Ending June 16th. 2026

    5d ago ·  Bonus

    EP 296. Deep Dive. "Recognized" by The AI, Privacy, and Security Weekly Update for the Week Ending June 16th. 2026

    This week's update illustrates a global landscape rapidly transforming under the influence of artificial intelligence, highlighting both its innovative potential and significant societal risks. Surveillance capabilities are expanding through SignalTrace, which links vehicle data to personal electronics, while military navigation increasingly relies on spatial data harvested from mobile gaming. Within the workforce, professionals are navigating a "botsitting" paradox where productivity gains are often offset by the labor of managing AI errors and oversight. Simultaneously, the educational sector faces a crisis as reliance on digital tools correlates with a measurable decline in students' reading comprehension and attention spans. Security concerns are also intensifying, evidenced by CISA's new mandates for faster software patching to counter automated cyberattacks. Ultimately, these reports suggest that the true challenge of the AI era lies in managing data correlation and organizational adaptation rather than just technical advancement.

    58 min

  3. Jun 16

    "Recognized" by The AI, Privacy, and Security Weekly Update for the Week Ending June 16th., 2026 Episode 296

    Episode 296. In this week’s update: Your license plate reader just got an upgrade, and now it wants to know what's in your pocket, too. The government finally admitted what security pros have been saying for years: AI means you have three days to patch, not three months. AI adoption went from 'we're running a pilot' to 'we're running the business,'  and nobody sent a memo. Workers are saving 11 hours a week to AI, then spending six of those hours babysitting the AI  and someone had to invent a word for that. Microsoft's AI chief said AI would automate most white-collar work, then clarified he meant 'tasks'  and that one-word swap changes everything. Meta dropped $14 billion on AI talent, shipped its first proprietary model, and is now discovering that building the thing and selling the thing are completely different jobs. A UK police officer allegedly used AI to fabricate evidence, and this isn't the first time British law enforcement has had an AI problem. Pokémon Go players spent years scanning the world for virtual creatures, and that data is now helping real drones navigate without GPS. This has been a week where the gap between what AI promises and what AI actually delivers has become very interesting to look at from the factory floor to the courtroom to the battlefield. Some stories are alarming. Some are clarifying. A few are genuinely strange. Let's get recognized. Find the full transcript to this podcast here.

    25 min
  4. EP 295. Deep Dive. Headache and the AI Privacy and Security Weekly Update for the Week Ending June 9th. 2026

    Jun 11 ·  Bonus

    EP 295. Deep Dive. Headache and the AI Privacy and Security Weekly Update for the Week Ending June 9th. 2026

    This week we highlight the dual-natured impact of artificial intelligence on global security, privacy, and administrative productivity. On the defensive side, tools like Google’s Gemini are blocking billions of fraudulent ads, while the NHS is deploying Microsoft Copilot to drastically reduce clinical paperwork. Conversely, bad actors are leveraging AI-driven phishing to compromise digital assets and developing adaptive malware that can reason through system defenses. Serious privacy concerns also emerge, evidenced by Meta’s controversial development of facial recognition for smart glasses and the misuse of automated license plate readers by law enforcement. Additionally, the reports detail how nation-state actors use professional networks like LinkedIn for espionage and how criminals exploit autonomous transit for physical crimes. Ultimately, the collection suggests that as AI becomes a central pillar of modern life, the most critical security skill is the ability to verify identity in an increasingly deceptive digital landscape.

    40 min

  5. Jun 10

    Headaches and the AI Privacy and Security Weekly Update for the Week Ending June 9th. 2026

    In this week's update:The NHS is about to hand half a million clinicians an AI assistant for their paperwork - and the question isn't whether it will work, it's whether healthcare will ever look the same again.An innocent man spent a month behind bars because an AI license plate reader put him in two places at once - and the cameras that could have cleared him were right there the whole time.China's military intelligence services have quietly turned LinkedIn into a recruitment tool, and the side gig that seemed too good to be true may be the most expensive mistake of your career.Anthropic spent a year watching how criminals actually use AI, and what they found is less about catastrophe and more about something far more unsettling: amplification.Researchers just demonstrated an AI-powered worm that doesn't just exploit weaknesses - it reasons, adapts, and chooses its own attack path in real time.Meta removed a facial recognition system from its smart glasses app this week - a system that, according to Meta, did not yet exist.A San Francisco burglar used a Waymo robotaxi as a getaway car, and between deleted footage and blurred faces, the case is still wide open months later.Hidden inside the GPS signal that guides every phone, every ship, and every missile on the planet, a researcher just found something the military has been quietly broadcasting for nearly two decades.Welcome back, everyone. This week, we are taking you from a British hospital corridor to a San Diego courtroom, from LinkedIn's shadowy recruitment pipeline to the hidden depths of a GPS signal that billions of people use every single day. Buckle up - this one covers the full spectrum, from the bureaucratic to the alarming to the genuinely mind-bending.  Find the full transcript to this podcast here.

    22 min
  6. Ep 294. Deep Dive. Bedtime and the A.I., Privacy, and Security Weekly Update for the Week ending June 2nd., 2026

    Jun 3 ·  Bonus

    Ep 294. Deep Dive. Bedtime and the A.I., Privacy, and Security Weekly Update for the Week ending June 2nd., 2026

    This deep dive explores the evolving landscape of artificial intelligence and its profound impact on global cybersecurity and infrastructure. Sources detail the dual nature of AI, highlighting its ability to uncover thousands of software vulnerabilities while simultaneously creating new risks through manipulated support bots and accelerated exploitation timelines. Beyond software, the text addresses physical security threats to undersea data cables and the potential repurposing of Cold War-era plutonium for private energy startups. Technical breakthroughs like certified quantum randomness and new browser-based spying techniques underscore a shifting digital perimeter where traditional trust models are failing. Furthermore, the economic reality of this shift is visible in Anthropic’s massive valuation, new usage-based AI pricing, and the unexpected role of remote work in sidelining junior talent. These developments suggest a future where automated containment and government oversight are becoming essential responses to the speed of algorithmic threats.

    35 min

  7. Jun 3

    Bedtime and the A.I., Privacy, and Security Weekly Update for the Week ending June 2nd., 2026

    Episode 294. For this week's update: The Trust Problem Nobody Has Solved. The AI verification problem isn't a bug to be patched; it's a structural flaw baked into the architecture of trust itself.  It's like asking a child to set their own bed time. Forget cookies and trackers, a website can now read your entire digital life from the rhythm of your hard drive. Meta's AI support bot did exactly what it was designed to do, and that turned out to be the problem. While the security world chases sophisticated threats, Google quietly closed one of the oldest and most exploited doors in session management. ETH Zurich researchers have done something cryptographers have wanted for decades produced randomness that the laws of physics themselves will guarantee forever. The generation entering the workforce during the remote-work era may be carrying a career penalty they didn't earn and can't yet see. The Software Industry Exhales  For Now. Wall Street spent a year writing software's obituary, and this month the patient sat up, ordered lunch, and posted its best returns since the dot-com era. GitHub just handed its most enthusiastic AI users their first real bill, and for many, the number is somewhere between shocking and career-defining. OK, let's tuck in! Find the full transcript to this podcast here.

    24 min
  8. Episode 293. Deep Dive. Movies, Music, and the AI, Privacy and Security Weekly Update for May 26th 2026

    May 27 ·  Bonus

    Episode 293. Deep Dive. Movies, Music, and the AI, Privacy and Security Weekly Update for May 26th 2026

    The corporate attack surface is expanding as autonomous AI agents and developer tools dissolve traditional security boundaries. The software supply chain is now a strategic vulnerability, allowing compromised “trusted tools” to bypass legacy defenses and move directly into internal environments. Recent incidents demonstrate the scale of the risk. GitHub confirmed unauthorized access to roughly 3,800 repositories after a malicious VS Code extension compromised a developer device. Google Cloud infrastructure also exposed a critical “time-to-vulnerability” gap: deleted API keys remained active for an average of 16 minutes, and in some cases up to 23 minutes, despite appearing revoked in the UI. These delays create exploitable windows for autonomous systems to access AI services or sensitive data before responders can intervene. The Cloud Security Alliance warns of an emerging “agentic threat” driven by excessive privileges, weak configurations, prompt injection, poor accountability, and flaws in machine-to-machine interaction. The challenge is no longer simply malicious code, but malicious intent expressed through natural language. Meanwhile, the labor market reflects a “low hire, low fire” reality rather than mass AI unemployment. Layoffs remain historically normal, but hiring and career mobility have slowed as firms adopt leaner operating models and assess automation’s long-term impact. Entry-level opportunities are narrowing as companies demand higher productivity from fewer employees using generative tools. Industry leaders remain divided. Steve Wozniak argues AI cannot replace human creativity, while figures such as Sam Altman and Elon Musk warn disruption may eventually require interventions like Universal Basic Income. Many firms are also using “AI transformation” narratives to justify restructuring and post-pandemic cost corrections. Creative industries are shifting from resisting AI to monetizing it. The AI-generated film Hell Grind reportedly required a $500,000 budget, with most costs tied to compute power. Maintaining visual consistency demanded prompts averaging 3,000 words, revealing that AI production remains management-intensive rather than effortless. Spotify and Universal Music Group are also developing licensing frameworks where artists retain control over AI-generated remixes while platforms monetize premium AI creative tools. Technology companies now face growing friction between rapid AI deployment and user trust. Google’s “disregard” search glitch showed how AI systems can misinterpret user queries as commands, undermining reliability. Apple’s roadmap, including context-aware Siri capabilities and private cloud compute, highlights the industry’s push toward personalized assistants. Ultimately, AI adoption depends on trust. Consumers will embrace assistants only if companies prove the infrastructure behind them is reliable, accountable, and secure enough to protect personal data.

    36 min
See All (387)

4.5
out of 5
4 Ratings

About

Into year 7 for this award-winning, light-hearted, lightweight AI privacy and security podcast that spans the globe in terms of issues covered, with topics that draw in everyone from executive to newbie, to tech specialist. For season 7, we've renamed the IT Privacy and Security Weekly Update to the AI, Privacy, and Security Weekly Update to better reflect the content. Your investment of between 15 and 20 minutes a week will bring you up to speed on half a dozen current AI privacy and security stories from around the world to help you improve the management of your own privacy and security.

Information