Episodes

  • Headline: Unmasking Digital Deception: Scam Busters Stay Vigilant Amid AI-Powered Fraud Surge

    Headline: Unmasking Digital Deception: Scam Busters Stay Vigilant Amid AI-Powered Fraud Surge
    Jan 25 2026
    Hey listeners, Scotty here, your go-to scam buster with a techie twist and zero tolerance for digital dirtbags. Picture this: I'm scrolling my feeds on January 25, 2026, and bam—scammers are dropping like flies, but they're still slinging fresh hooks. Just this week in Bangkok, Immigration Division 3 raided a condo in Muang Thong Thani, nabbing 13 Africans—11 Nigerians including coordinator Chimoabo Okafor, and two from Côte d’Ivoire. These Telegram-toting tricksters posed as "Bingwen Fu," a fake Chinese engineer on Facebook and Line, sweet-talking a Thai woman out of over 2 million baht for a phony construction project. They bolted barefoot down stairwells when cops stormed 11 spots, but zip—caught with scripted chats and crypto trails linking to regional networks.

    Stateside, Rhode Island State Police cuffed five fraudsters on January 22, including Warwick's Daniel Tuirok, a 59-year-old Cranston highway worker at 71 Hobbs Road, for SNAP and unemployment scams raking in thousands by faking jobless status. Aaron Sam from Central Falls allegedly pocketed $24,162 by underreporting earnings from 2022 to 2025. And in Georgia, prison inmates Joey Amour Jackson and Lance Riddle got convicted for jury duty scams, using smuggled cell phones to demand gift cards and Bitcoin while claiming gag orders on fake arrest warrants.

    But the real cyber chills? AI voice spoofing exploding across San Diego County and beyond. Scammers snag seconds of your social media audio, clone your grandkid's voice crying, "Mom, I've been arrested—send bail now!" or fake a cop with a spoofed number. The Star News warns these deepfakes could cost $16 billion by late 2026. BBB's latest Scam Tracker Risk Report screams investment and crypto cons top the list, with online scams hitting 61% of reports and 78% of dollar losses—social media ads kick off 36% of them, blending into romance and job hustles.

    Phishing's raging too, nearing a million attacks quarterly per Hunto.ai stats, now AI-boosted for hyper-targeted spear-phishing. Over in Manila, Bureau of Immigration deported 17 Taiwanese fugitives tied to massive online scams, proving tourist visas won't shield these ops.

    So, listeners, armor up: Never wire cash to online strangers, even "romantic" ones begging via prepaid cards or crypto—BBB says trace it? Good luck. Vet online shops at BBB.org, eyeball that HTTPS lock, and privacy-lock your socials—scammers harvest voicemails for clones. Enable phishing-proof MFA like FIDO2 keys, run simulated phish drills, patch everything, and if a voice screams emergency, call back on a known number. Check accounts weekly, use unique passwords with 2FA, and report to ic3.gov pronto.

    Stay sharp out there—scammers evolve, but so do we. Thanks for tuning in, listeners—subscribe for more scam-smashing intel. This has been a Quiet Please production, for more check out quietplease.ai.

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    This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI
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    4 mins
  • Headline: Uncover the Latest Cyber Chaos: Scotty's Scam Slaying Insights for 2026

    Headline: Uncover the Latest Cyber Chaos: Scotty's Scam Slaying Insights for 2026
    Jan 23 2026
    Hey listeners, Scotty here, your go-to scam slayer with a techie twist on the latest cyber chaos hitting the wires this week. Picture this: I'm scrolling my feeds on January 23, 2026, and bam—scammers are dropping like flies, but they're evolving faster than a quantum algorithm. Let's dive into the dirt from the past few days so you don't end up as their next debugged victim.

    First up, that sneaky Remote Invite Scam exploding in Chicago. ABC7 Chicago reports Claudia Coffey from Arlington Heights clicked what she thought was a party invite from a friend—spoiled by scammers spoofing the sender. Boom, remote access granted, hackers raided her laptop, Zelled $2,400 from Village Bank by Wintrust, and nearly nabbed $600 from PayPal. She fought back quick, got refunds, but not before they spammed her contacts with more fakes. Check Point's Tony Sabaj warns these invites slip into calendars too, bypassing email filters. Pro tip: Hover over that sender's real address, ditch auto-calendar subs, and if it pops up unsolicited, delete like it's radioactive code.

    Over in Ohio, Auglaize County Sheriff's Office just nailed Chuan Zhao, a 43-year-old Chinese national from Brooklyn, New York, on January 21 in a sting op. WLIO says it started as a work-from-home gig for a St. Marys resident, morphed into an IT scam promising crypto recovery for wired cash. Victim coughed up big via wire and in-person pickup—sheriff's teamed with FBI Lima, Grand Lake Task Force, and US Customs to bait the second drop. Zhao's chilling in Auglaize County Jail on two felony theft by deception counts. Sheriff Vorhees says call local cops if it smells fishy.

    Michigan State Police shut down a $100K elder scam on January 16, nabbing Yahui Zhu, 44 from California, as she rolled up to Midland County victims' door for cash. Click on Detroit details gift cards, crypto, and in-home pressure on an 82-year-old man and 74-year-old woman—Lt. Miller notes this doorstep escalation is statewide. Zhu's bonded at $500K, court date February 3.

    And don't sleep on the AI apocalypse: World Economic Forum flags generative AI supercharging phishing, voice clones, and deepfakes as 2026's top threat, outpacing ransomware. Experian says 68% fear ID theft, FTC losses hit $12.5B last year. DFS in New York dropped a January 22 alert on phishing emails faking their domain—only trust dfs.ny.gov.

    Listeners, armor up: Shred sensitive mail per Chelsea Groton tips, enable 2FA and biometrics, unique passwords everywhere, no gift card pays, verify urgent voices via callback. Pop-ups screaming virus? Close 'em, don't dial. Review statements weekly, freeze credit, and question everything—scammers thrive on haste.

    Thanks for tuning in, smash that subscribe for more scam-smashing intel. This has been a Quiet Please production, for more check out quietplease.ai. Stay locked and loaded!

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    This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI
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    4 mins
  • Hack-Proof Your Digital Life: Savvy Tips to Outsmart Cyber Scams in 2026

    Hack-Proof Your Digital Life: Savvy Tips to Outsmart Cyber Scams in 2026
    Jan 21 2026
    Hey listeners, Scotty here, your go-to scam-busting wizard with a techie twist on the wild world of cyber crooks. It's early 2026, and January's hitting like a post-holiday hangover for hackers—new data from Aura and Fox5 Atlanta shows fraud spiking hard right now, targeting those forgotten shopping accounts, recycled passwords, and saved card details from your Black Friday binges. Digital privacy pro Kristin Lewis at Aura nails it: clean up that digital clutter fast, or you're prime bait.

    Picture this: over in Grant County, Washington, the Sheriff's Crime Reduction Team just pulled off a sting for the ages. On January 19th, they nabbed Damion O. McDonald, a 36-year-old Jamaican hustler who flew into SeaTac Airport that morning via rideshare, met an 87-year-old victim at State Route 26 and Beverly Burke Road-SW, and snatched $64,000 in cash—part of over $100k scammed since October 2025 with fake promises of luxury cars and real estate. McDonald's cooling his heels in Grant County Jail on charges of first-degree theft from a vulnerable adult and possessing stolen property, per the Columbia Basin Herald and KPQ News. Classic elder scam playbook: gift cards, wire transfers, and greed.

    But it's not just grannies getting got. Gen Digital's Q4 2025 Threat Report drops a bomb—scams raked in billions via malvertising on Facebook (77% of phishing), YouTube, and Reddit, with fake shops exploding 62% year-over-year. Click a shady ad for boots or gadgets in your feed? Boom, you're funding Chinese scam syndicates who stole $17 billion in crypto last year alone, per Chainalysis and Fortune, using AI deepfakes and EZ-Pass phishing texts from groups like Darcula.

    Philly's got international drama too—FBI warns Chinese students at local unis are fielding calls from fake Chinese cops claiming your data's tied to fraud, demanding crypto "bail" or 24/7 surveillance. And tax season's looming: BBB flags IRS impersonators via texts (27%), calls (30%), even WhatsApp, fishing for SSNs or instant payments—the real IRS never hits you like that.

    FTC's got your back on phishing: update security software auto, enable multi-factor auth—that's your username plus a text code or fingerprint—and back up data. Spot a sketchy email from your "bank" screaming account issues? Don't click; call the real number. Check email forwarding for hijacks, nuke unknown logins, and shop trusted sites, not social ads.

    Stay sharp, listeners—scammers evolve faster than your OS updates. Thanks for tuning in; subscribe for more scam-smashing tips. This has been a Quiet Please production, for more check out quietplease.ai.

    For more http://www.quietplease.ai

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    This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI
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    3 mins
  • Unmasking AI-Powered Scams: Scotty's Cybersecurity Insights for 2026

    Unmasking AI-Powered Scams: Scotty's Cybersecurity Insights for 2026
    Jan 19 2026
    Hey listeners, Scotty here, your go-to scam slayer with the tech chops to keep you one step ahead of these digital dirtbags. Picture this: it's early 2026, and scammers are leveling up like it's a cyber arms race. Just last month in November 2025, Thai cops busted a crew of Chinese fraudsters who weaponized AI to clone voices and even fool bank biometric systems—think deepfake faces blinking and nodding on video calls to bypass security. Pol. Col. Neti Wongkularb from Thailand's Technology Crime Suppression Division spilled the beans to Thai PBS Verify: these creeps start by calling from a weird number, claiming it's their new one after ditching the old. They chat casually, hang up, wait a day or two, then hit you with a sob story—like pretending to be your kid stuck with a big purchase, begging for 10,000 to 100,000 baht to tide them over till they reach their spouse.

    Don't fall for it, folks. If that familiar voice pipes up from an unknown number, politely ghost 'em, hang up, and ring back on the saved contact to verify. Set a family passcode—some secret only you and your loved ones know—for those urgent video pleas. And scrub those high-res selfies from social media; they're scammer gold for training AI clones.

    Over in Greece, police just nailed their first smishing ring—Chinese SMS blasters firing fake alerts to snag your data. Cambodia's cracking down hard too: they deported Chinese tycoon Chen Zhi this month for running massive scam ops from Phnom Penh, and over 400 Indonesians got "released" from compounds in Bavet after forced gigs in romance and crypto hustles. One 18-year-old Sumatran kid escaped after eight unpaid months, passport held hostage by his "Chinese boss." Meanwhile, Thailand's Royal Thai Police Anti-Money Laundering Centre, led by Pol Gen Ittipol Atchariyapradit, seized 10 billion baht in assets last year, froze 800 mule accounts, and cuffed 32 in Operation Khayee Hua Jai Thotsakan.

    Stateside and beyond, watch for AI-powered phishing mimicking your boss's emails, MFA fatigue bombs flooding your phone till you cave, malicious browser extensions spying on keystrokes, and DNS redirects hijacking your bank login. Dutch police even sold fake tickets last week to demo how easy it is. CIRO in Canada just fessed up to a phishing breach exposing 750,000 investors' SINs and incomes—no passwords, but prime identity theft fodder.

    Stay frosty: enable MFA with authenticator apps, not just pushes; block at the DNS level; patch everything; limit browser add-ons; and think twice on pop-up updates. Banks like Bank of East Asia never SMS links for logins or OTPs—per Hong Kong Monetary Authority alerts.

    Thanks for tuning in, listeners—subscribe for more scam-smashing tips. This has been a Quiet Please production, for more check out quietplease.ai.

    For more http://www.quietplease.ai

    Get the best deals https://amzn.to/3ODvOta

    This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI
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    3 mins
  • Cybercrime Crackdown: Cambodian Scam Hubs Raided, SMS Attacks Surge, and How to Outsmart AI-Powered Scams

    Cybercrime Crackdown: Cambodian Scam Hubs Raided, SMS Attacks Surge, and How to Outsmart AI-Powered Scams
    Jan 16 2026
    Hey listeners, Scotty here, your go-to scam-busting wizard diving straight into the cyber chaos of the past week. Picture this: I'm scrolling my feeds on January 16, 2026, and Cambodia's Sihanoukville is emptying out like a bad heist movie. Fraudsters are bolting from scam hubs like Amber Casino after the government's anti-scam commission raided 118 spots and nabbed around 5,000 folks in the last six months, per France 24 reports. This follows the big takedown of Chen Zhi, the sanctioned scam kingpin tied to Prince Group, extradited to China. Tuk-tuks and Lexus SUVs were hauling con artists outta there, but insiders whisper it's "anti-crime theater"—workers tipped off ahead, relocating gear to keep the multibillion-dollar pig butchering ops alive. These creeps lure you into fake romances or crypto pumps, siphoning billions globally. UN stats peg 2023 losses at $37 billion, with 100,000 trafficked souls slaving in Cambodia alone.

    Closer to home, Moose Jaw Police just warned about the grandparent scam spiking—scammers pose as your grandkid in jail, then a fake lawyer calls demanding gift cards or bitcoin. One bold jerk even showed up at a victim's door for cash pickup. Thunder Bay cops aren't messing around either; on January 14, they busted Levi Bell, Samantha Bennett-Dolph, Devon Bond, Linda Ledger, Kelsey Tenhunfen, Wayne Woodbeck, and Dustin Woodbeck in a drug ring with $6,500 in coke and fentanyl, plus fraud-linked proceeds.

    But the real techie nightmare? SMS scams got AI-upgraded, says Trend Micro. No more typos—these texts hit personalized, screaming urgency like "Your Australia Post parcel's delayed—click to confirm!" or "Bank account locking in 24 hours!" They mimic banks, MyGov, or delivery apps, pushing fake login links to phish your creds. Crypto kiosk scams exploded too; FBI's IC3 logged over $333 million swiped in 2025 alone, like 80-year-old Marlene Betesh from New Jersey who lost $9,500 at a liquor store ATM after a fake Apple alert panicked her into wiring cash to "protect" it from Russian hackers.

    Listeners, arm up: Pause every urgent text—call the real number from their official site, never the link. Hover over URLs; if it's sketchy, delete. Lock accounts with unique passwords, 2FA, and apps like Trend Micro ScamCheck. Ditch gift cards or crypto demands—they're scam beacons. Report to Scamwatch in Oz or IC3 stateside. AI's cloning voices now, so verify family emergencies on a trusted line.

    Stay sharp out there—scammers evolve, but so do we. Thanks for tuning in, listeners; hit subscribe for more scam-smashing tips. This has been a Quiet Please production, for more check out quietplease.ai.

    For more http://www.quietplease.ai

    Get the best deals https://amzn.to/3ODvOta

    This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI
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    3 mins
  • Protect Yourself: Malware, Ponzi Schemes, and Phishing Scams Exposed

    Protect Yourself: Malware, Ponzi Schemes, and Phishing Scams Exposed
    Jan 14 2026
    Hey listeners, Scotty here, your go-to scam buster with a techie twist on the wild world of cyber crooks. Picture this: you're clicking through an online checkout, card details flying, when sneaky Magecart skimmers—those JavaScript vampires from Malwarebytes reports—suck up your American Express, Mastercard, or Discover data right from major payment networks like AmEx and Diners Club. This campaign's been lurking since 2022, exploiting e-commerce weak spots, so shop owners, patch your CMS now, and you, grab Malwarebytes Browser Guard to block those malicious scripts before they feast.

    Speaking of long cons, Ponzi kingpin Renwick Haddow's sentencing just got bumped from January 28 to April 29 by the New York Southern District Court, per FX News Group. This guy's been cooperating from Morocco and the Bahamas, liquidating assets from his Bitcoin Store and Bar Works scams that fleeced investors since 2014 with fake crypto platforms and co-working hype. Arrested back in 2017, he's still dodging the slam while victims wait—classic delay tactic.

    Over in King County, Washington, scammers are posing as deputies from the Sheriff's Office, blasting calls about missed jury duty and fake arrest warrants, as KIRO7 exposed. Sergeant Val Kelly warns they'll demand instant phone payments or threaten cuffs—total BS. Real cops don't call for cash like that; hang up, hit the non-emergency line, and check socials for alerts. Snohomish County's seeing it too.

    AARP Pennsylvania's fraud squad, via PR Newswire on January 13, flags five 2026 nasties hitting seniors hard: phony employment gigs demanding fees, recovery scams charging to "fix" prior rip-offs, digital arrest video terrors, "Hello pervert" blackmail emails, and romance hustles pushing crypto. Losses for 60-plus folks hit $445 million in 2024 alone, and AI's making 'em slicker.

    Then there's the massive 2026 breach dumping passwords from big tech platforms, screaming PCMatic's wake-up: ditch password recycling now. Hackers shotgun stolen creds from Netflix to your bank—stop 'em with unique 12+ char beasts in a password manager, crank on multi-factor auth everywhere, scan browser saves with Google's Password Checkup, and freeze your credit.

    In Denver, the city government's blasting warnings about fake rezoning fee emails from bogus denvergov@usa.com addresses, as their Tech Services confirmed January 13. Chief Info Sec Officer Merlin Namuth says pause on urgency—verify first.

    Listeners, arm up: unique passwords, 2FA like a digital moat, sniff phishing by spotting urgent threats or bad grammar, overshare nothing online, and research investments via FCA registers. Update apps, buy tickets from STAR-approved spots, monitor statements. Scammers evolve, but you're the boss—stay vigilant, breathe, verify.

    Thanks for tuning in, smash that subscribe button for more scam-smashing tips. This has been a Quiet Please production, for more check out quietplease.ai.

    For more http://www.quietplease.ai

    Get the best deals https://amzn.to/3ODvOta

    This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI
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    4 mins
  • Beware the Newest Scams Sweeping Your Feeds: A Scam Nerd's Guide to Staying Safe in 2026

    Beware the Newest Scams Sweeping Your Feeds: A Scam Nerd's Guide to Staying Safe in 2026
    Jan 11 2026
    Hey listeners, Scotty here, your friendly neighborhood scam nerd, and we’re diving straight into the freshest fraud hitting your feeds this week.

    Let’s start in Chicago. ABC7 Chicago reports that the Better Business Bureau just dropped its 2026 list of top scams, and online purchase scams are number one for the sixth year running. Fake shopping sites, especially for pets, plus bogus Amazon, Apple, and Walmart lookalike pages are vacuuming up card numbers and never shipping a thing. Right behind that: classic phishing and fake work-from-home job offers that ask you to “buy equipment” or “pay for training” up front. The BBB’s Steve Bernas says scammers are now mixing in AI and deepfakes during fake job interviews, which is cyberpunk-level evil, but here we are.

    Now jump to New Delhi. The Times of India reports a retired doctor couple in Greater Kailash lost about 15 crore rupees in what cops call a “digital arrest” scam. Scammers pretended to be TRAI officials and Mumbai Police, accused them of money laundering, then kept them on video calls for two weeks, isolating them and forcing transfers “for verification.” That’s not hacking computers, that’s hacking nervous systems. If anyone claims to be law enforcement, threatens arrest, and tells you not to talk to anyone: hang up, look up the official number yourself, and call back on your own.

    In the U.S., WHIO in Ohio says the Preble County Sheriff’s Office is warning about crooks calling families of people in jail, pretending to be from the jail, and demanding $500 on PayPal for an ankle monitor so their loved one can be released. Coconino County’s Superior Court in Arizona is seeing something similar: fake detention facility staff claiming there’s a court order and a warrant unless you pay up. Real cops and real courts do not call you for PayPal, gift cards, or crypto. Ever.

    Speaking of low-tech but nasty, ABC7 in Los Angeles reports Glendale police just arrested two women for running a counterfeit $100 bill scam at a dozen In-N-Out locations. That’s your reminder: scams aren’t just in your inbox; they’re standing at the counter with fries.

    For a quick defense patch: Tom’s Guide suggests cleaning up your digital life in 2026 by checking if your email’s been in a breach using Have I Been Pwned, turning on two-factor authentication everywhere, updating your router, and killing old accounts you don’t use. A Substack guide called The Internet Basics Guide That Apparently We Still Need in 2026 reminds everyone of the golden rule: your bank, Apple, the IRS, none of them will email or text asking you to click a link and type in your password or full card number.

    So here’s your Scotty short list: no urgent payments by wire, gift card, or PayPal on a phone call; no logging into anything from a link you didn’t start; verify callers using numbers you look up yourself; and if it sounds like a movie plot, treat it like a scam.

    Thanks for tuning in, and don’t forget to subscribe so the scammers hate your newfound wisdom just a little more each week. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai.

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    4 mins
  • Scam Alert: Protect Yourself from the Latest Tricks, Straight from the "Scam Nerd"

    Scam Alert: Protect Yourself from the Latest Tricks, Straight from the "Scam Nerd"
    Jan 9 2026
    Hey listeners, Scotty here, your friendly neighborhood scam nerd, coming to you from the front lines of what the bad guys have been up to this week.

    Let’s start with the phones in your pockets. Citizens National Bank in Texas just warned that scammers are spoofing the bank’s real support number and calling customers, pretending to be from “fraud prevention.” They ask for one-time passcodes, online banking passwords, even remote access to your phone. Citizens National Bank says they will never call you for that info, so if someone does, you hang up, flip your card over, call the number on the back, and verify for yourself.

    The same playbook is hitting taxes. The IRS is warning about phishing emails, sketchy texts, and social media “tax tips” that tell you to lie on returns or claim secret credits. The IRS reminds everyone: they do not email, text, or DM you demanding immediate payment. If a “tax agent” is rushing you, it’s not compliance, it’s a con.

    Scams aren’t just digital theory either; people are getting arrested. In Cambodia, ANC News reports that authorities just picked up an alleged mastermind and two others behind a massive crypto scam targeting investors in China. Police say they lured victims with fake high-return investments, then moved the money through crypto and shell companies before extradition caught up with them. When you hear “guaranteed” profits in crypto, remember that story and walk away.

    On the U.S. side, EastIdahoNews, via Danielle Kingston of A+ Idaho Bail Bonds, is flagging a brutal jail-bond scam. Callers pretend to be law enforcement or a bail bond company and tell you your jailed family member will be “re-arrested” unless you pay more for things like ankle monitors. They use real inmate details pulled from public rosters to sound legit. The Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office says: don’t pay a dime until you hang up and call the jail, the court, or your actual bondsman on a verified number.

    And then there’s 2026’s favorite villain: AI. Choice in Australia is warning about AI video clones, where scammers deepfake celebrities like Kevin Costner or even your boss and hop on a video call asking for money. Veriff’s new fraud report says criminals are now using AI to mass-generate fake documents, voices, and faces, making romance scams and investment schemes look painfully real.

    Here’s what I want you to remember to dodge all of this. First, slow down; urgency is a weapon. Second, never give one-time passcodes, full card numbers, or remote access to anyone who contacts you first, no matter what name shows on caller ID. Third, verify using your own channel: numbers from official sites, your card, or a saved contact you trust. And finally, be skeptical of anything that feels custom-made for you: the perfect investment, the perfect partner, or the perfect panic.

    Thanks for tuning in, listeners, and don’t forget to subscribe so Scotty can keep you one patch ahead of the scammers. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai.

    For more http://www.quietplease.ai

    Get the best deals https://amzn.to/3ODvOta

    This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI
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    3 mins