Brains Byte Back

We are back with a brand new episode out on the 1st of October! 

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Today we will be sharing 5 clips, from 5 of our best episodes.

But first, we have some sad news. Brains Byte Back will be coming to an end, for now at least. After more than two years, the show has come a long way and we want to thank everyone who has supported the show through your plays, follows, messages, and reviews.

However, we have a treat for you. In today's episode, since we did a Best of 2020, we decided to finish with a mix of episodes from 2019 and a handful from 2021. We hope you like it!

In North Korea, the internet as we know it is almost non-existent. Only a few high-level officials are allowed access, and most universities, are given a small number of strictly monitored computers.

But for the majority of citizens, the only internet they know of is Kwangmyong, a walled-off network that allows access only to domestic websites and emails. Thus, access to foreign media and outside information is limited and treasured.

This information is often obtained through the grey market, distributed using USBs and SD cards, and as it stands, this technology could be the most effective weapons to bring down the authoritarian regime

In today's episode of the Brains Byte Back podcast, we will be speaking with Alex Gladstein, Chief Strategy Officer at Human Rights Foundation, which is responsible for Flash Drives for Freedom, a campaign that helps North Korean defectors smuggle USB drives and SD cards, loaded with outside information, into the hermit region to weaken the dictatorship.

Gladstein explains how this all started, a little over 10 years ago when DVDs, CDs, and radio broadcasts trickled into the country and began to significantly change citizens' perspectives of the outside world.

According to Gladstein, in interviews with numerous North Korean defectors, it was this foreign media that encouraged many of them to get out.

From our interview with Gladstein, you will learn what information is put on these drives, how external information getting into the hands of its citizens is a threat to the North Korean regime, and what could happen if a North Korean citizen is caught with one of these drives.

Additionally, you will learn how the 2014 comedy film "The Interview" made an impact in North Korea, becoming one of the most sought-after pieces of foreign media.

Every day hackers send out emails cleverly disguised, posing as legitimate institutions or individuals to lure recipients into providing sensitive data such as personally identifiable information, banking, and credit card details, and passwords.

You might be thinking you are too smart to fall for this, but the truth is, these attacks are often so sophisticated they can cause even the most tech-savvy individuals to fall for them, hook, line, and sinker.

In this episode, we explore how to identify phishing attacks, how they evolve with current affairs and trends, and what to do if you become the victim of an attack.

To do this we are joined by Dan Merino, CEO of Green Dot Security, a cybersecurity company offering services to small and mid-sized businesses.

Today, you will learn how hackers use themes based on larger events such as COVID-19 or tax season to add a legitimate edge to their phishing attacks, why 2-factor authentication is so important to protect yourself, and why the information you post online could be a goldmine for phishing attacks.

We discuss how humans are often the weakest point for a cyberattack, but can also stand to be the strongest defense when trained well.

We also explore how call centers become the target of hacks, in order to access the information of their clientele, so the attackers can pose as a member of the call center to conduct phishing attacks over the phone using this information.

In today’s episode of the Brains Byte Back podcast, we will take a look at three separate cybercrime stories, attacks, and events, told by three different cybercrime and crypto experts.

We have seen many bank heists and robberies portrayed in movies and TV shows, and they are often high octane, adrenaline-fueled, and exciting.

But times have changed, and no longer are the most sophisticated and lucrative heists carried out by a crew of heavily armed robbers. Instead, it is cybercriminals behind computer screens that stand to make the most money.

This was proven by The Bangladesh Bank Heist that took place in 2016, when unidentified hackers attempted to steal $951 million from the Bangladesh Central Bank in Dhaka.

Even though a lot of this money was recovered, the thieves still managed to get away with $81 million, and the attempt is considered one of the biggest bank heists of all time.

First on the podcast, we will hear Pamela Clegg, Director of Financial Investigations and Education for CipherTrace, an intelligence company working to eradicate financial crimes and provide prevention strategies in the cryptocurrency and blockchain spaces. Clegg shares a story of how CipherTrace teamed up with McAfee to tackle NetWalker ransomware, a ransomware that has become a franchise within the cybercrime underworld.

Secondly, we are joined by Ondrej Krehel, CEO, and founder of digital forensics firm LIFARS, who has worked with the FBI, DHS, Interpol, and many other government organizations on cyber defense and threat hunting. Krehel joins us to discuss his work with NiceHash, a crypto-mining marketplace, which came to LIFARS for help in response to a $67M crypto hack perpetrated by the North Korean military.

And finally, we are joined by Rytis Bieliauskas, CTO of cryptocurrency payment platform Coingate, to discuss how a DEA agent and a Secret Service agent stole Bitcoins from the Silk Road owner and got caught because of Bitcoin's traceability.

In this episode of the Brains Byte Back Podcast, we want to explore if "The Terminator" could ever become a reality, and what other forms of AI weapons and warfare we might see in the near future.

To do this we are joined by Marshall Barnes, an advanced concept science and technology R&D engineer who has been associated with advanced weapons concepts involving robotics and computerized weapons systems since 1982.

Barnes began his career working on ideas for antisubmarine warfare and was a recruitment target by the attorney of Arm-Tech, James Maxwell.

In 2008 he published a paper through Scientific Americans' blog community on current and future weapons systems that was scrubbed off the Internet by DARPA because it revealed too much.

Barnes kicks off the episode by explaining how he first got started in the technological weapons space, and how a love for sci-fi inspired him to design futuristic weapons.

He also breaks down how he would revise classic Star Wars weapons and vehicles to make them more effective, and how his career was launched by a desire to create his own sci-fi movie.

We also discuss a recent BBC article titled "Biden urged to back AI weapons to counter China and Russia threats," and Barnes shares his thoughts on why he is not afraid of AI becoming self-aware.

He also discusses China's super-soldier program, and how he likes to contemplate countermeasures against new technological weapons from foreign threats as a hobby in his free time.

Additionally, Barnes explains what "Digital Centrism" is and why it holds back many in the tech community.

There is no doubt that 2020 will be remembered as the year that COVID lockdowns stole from us, but it will also be the year that TikTok broke headlines, records, and became an enemy of the former US president.

As of February 2021, it is estimated that TikTok now has over 1.1 Billion active monthly users. But how did the app become so big and what are the driving factors behind the app's rise to fame?

In today's episode of the Brains Byte Back podcast, we break down the psychological components that allow social media apps, like TikTok, to rise to the top and snowball with users.

To do this we are joined by Austin Iuliano, a Social Media Marketing Consultant that has worked with major emerging social media such as Meerkat, Periscope, Snapchat, Musical.ly/Tiktok, and Live.ly.

Luliano shares with us how he went from homeless sleeping in his car to one of the fastest-growing live streaming influencers, and the steps he took to achieve this.

He also explains why and how TikTok became so successful, examples of social media companies that have risen and fallen due to major mistakes, and strategies for emerging social media sites that anyone can use to grow their audience.

In this episode, you will also learn why successful social media sites have to help their users achieve something or get better at something, how Vine rapidly fell apart, and why Andrew Yang's book "The War on Normal People" is a must-read for anyone who wants to understand the business models of social media.

Luliano also shares with us why he has a Reddit account dedicated to just following, puppies, animals, and "kind, cuddly things."

And finally, he explains how to use the algorithms of new social media features to your advantage.

Around the world, natural disasters and tragedies strike every week and during these tough times, we often see the best in human nature thanks to donations and charity work. However, despite good intentions, a lot of money and resources are lost to waste and fraud.

In today's episode of the Brains Byte Back podcast, we speak with Naysa Mishler, the co-founder, and CEO of Everest Effect, an AI-driven crisis recovery marketplace removing waste and fraud from donations with transparency, so that people affected by crises can get the exact help they need at the moment they need it.

Mishler explains how disorganization, also known in the industry as "the second disaster," can be counterproductive when it comes to donations, highlighting the example of winter coats being sent to Haiti following the earthquake in 2010.

Additionally, she speaks about the current situation the United States faces in terms of crisis recovery from the pandemic. And finally, we dissect the psychology behind donations, and how Everest Effect taps into this.

In its most basic form, Everest's marketplace verifies the identity and need of those affected by the crisis to request a basket of items at $100 or less. Those who wish to give can fill those baskets.

Mishler also explains why fraud is such a big issue within charity work, and how Everest Effect tackles this through its verification process, to ensure the right people are getting help.

According to Statista, by 2025 we can expect to see a total of 30 Billion IoT devices, up 50% from 20 Billion in 2020.  With such a huge rise in numbers, IoT technology stands to change every corner of our lives, and in this episode, we briefly explore each of these areas, from our toilets to our cars, and beyond.  To do this we are joined by Vats Vanamamalai, an IoT Data Strategy Mastermind from Solace, a company that specializes in the smart movement of data.  In this episode, we discuss a new disease-detecting “precision health” toilet that can sense multiple signs of illness through automated urine and stool analysis. Vats shares with us how soon he thinks this will be in all of our homes and references an interesting historical fact citing the date the flushing toilet was invented and how soon it took to be widely adopted. Spoiler alert, it took a while.  We also discuss how vertical farming will become more prevalent in the food production industry and potentially our back gardens, and how IoT can help cars detect when a tire will puncture before it happens.  Additionally, we explore the potentially deadly threat of a smart car being hacked.

In July 2020, speaking via video at the World Artificial Intelligence Conference in Shanghai, Elon Musk stated that "I'm extremely confident that level five - or essentially complete autonomy - will happen and I think will happen very quickly."

While this is exciting, we still don't have a clear idea of how or when AI vehicles will become a normal part of our everyday lives.

In this episode, we look to explore how far away a future of fully autonomous vehicles really is, where we will see this transition first, and what it will take for us to arrive there. We also debate whether we could live in a future where humans will no longer be allowed to drive and AI-operated vehicles become legally mandatory.

To do this we invited a number of experts on the show to share their thoughts on this topic.

In this episode, we are joined by Jason Torchinsky, the Senior Editor for the automotive technology site Jalopnik, and the author of Robot, Take the Wheel: The Road to Autonomous Cars and the Lost Art of Driving. Torchinsky breaks down the five different levels of autonomous vehicles, Elon Musk's comments at last year’s World Artificial Intelligence Conference, and he explains how far he really thinks Tesla, and other companies, are from full autonomy.

We are also joined by Carl Anthony, the Detroit-based managing editor of Automoblog and AutoVision News. Anthony joins us to highlight what countries are leading the way for autonomous vehicle technology, and how consumer psychology stands to influence the production of autonomous vehicles.

And lastly, we are joined by Melanie Musson, an autonomous vehicle and insurance specialist that produces written content for the auto insurance comparison site AutoInsurance.org.

She explains how autonomous vehicles might make certain personal details irrelevant for car insurance companies, why manual driving could become unaffordable for the majority of drivers, and how car insurance companies stand to influence the psychology of consumers.