Joseph Cox
@josephcox.bsky.social
Hacking/crime/privacy journalist. Author of DARK WIRE, buy here: https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/joseph-cox/dark-wire/9781541702691/#preorder Co-founder of 404 Media. Signal: joseph.404 Email: joseph@404media.co
This man might go to prison for allegedly wiping his phone before DHS officials could search it. No warrant for the phone, no specific claim of what 'evidence' might be on it. But he used a duress/wipe password, leading to the charge Watch more and subscribe here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=lmik...
New from 404 Media: Apple's 'Private Relay' is exposing users' real IP addresses. Private Relay is supposed to protect all your browsing in Safari. But researchers found a bunch of issues that are exposing real IPs. I verified they do. Not fixed, a live issue www.404media.co/apples-priva...
Apple's ‘Private Relay’ Is Exposing Users' Real IP Addresses
Researchers found a group of issues that mean Private Relay isn't actually protecting users' real IP addresses. 404 Media verified the issues do expose IP addresses.
404media.co
New: Microsoft has introduced new limits to how much its engineers can spend on AI tools at work and told employees that maximizing AI use internally is not the company’s goal, according to an internal Microsoft email obtained by 440 Media. www.404media.co/microsoft-te...
Microsoft Tells Engineers ‘Tokenmaxxing Is Not What We Are Optimizing For’
Microsoft is introducing budget limits for AI use but says it still wants to be an ‘AI-first’ company.
404media.co
New: police are being explicitly told to hide the fact they're using Flock to pull people over and arrest them. Basically, do not mention this in official police reports. If the tech is completely legal and acceptable, like law enforcement say, why hide it? www.404media.co/do-not-menti...
‘DO NOT MENTION ALPR USAGE’: How Cops Are Trying to Hide Their Use of Flock
“DO NOT MENTION ALPR USAGE TO THE OCCUPANTS OF THE VEHICLE. DO NOT MENTION ALPR USAGE IN YOUR REPORT OR COMPLAINT."
404media.co
New: Police are being told to hide the fact that they're using Flock to pull people over and arrest them in both encounters with citizens but ALSO in their official police reports: www.404media.co/do-not-menti...
‘DO NOT MENTION ALPR USAGE’: How Cops Are Trying to Hide Their Use of Flock
“DO NOT MENTION ALPR USAGE TO THE OCCUPANTS OF THE VEHICLE. DO NOT MENTION ALPR USAGE IN YOUR REPORT OR COMPLAINT."
404media.co
The SEC bought airline ticketing data to monitor worldwide flights. New documents we got show the data wasn't just for U.S. domestic flights, or even international arrivals. It included flights between foreign countries too. All queried without a warrant www.404media.co/the-sec-boug...
The SEC Bought Airline Data to Monitor Flights Worldwide
The SEC bought access to worldwide airline ticketing records. Airlines including Delta, United, and American sold the data.
404media.co
New: we've obtained the guide Flock makes for police to try to convince cities to buy Flock cameras, even when there is widespread opposition to it. Encourages police to "own the narrative before someone else does," need to have a "carefully scripted presentation" www.404media.co/own-the-narr...
‘Own the Narrative’: Leaked Flock Guide Shows How It Teaches Cops to Promote Its Tech
"This document shows a coordinated effort from Flock Safety to compel law enforcement agencies to convince our elected leaders to represent their interests as a company rather than the interests of co...
404media.co
This ex-Flock employee said he felt like he was living a "Kim Possible" or "Hannah Montana" life. As an immigrant whose father was deported, he organized against ICE when they descended on his city. Then, he'd go to work trying to sell Flock cameras to cities. Watch: www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKYY...
New from 404 Media: Jonathan Paz’s job was to convince cities to buy Flock cameras. After initially being enthusiastic about the company, he became disillusioned. I spoke to Paz about how he first joined Flock, what he was lied to about, and why he had to get out www.404media.co/why-a-flock-...
Why a Flock Worker Quit: ‘They Lied’
Jonathan Paz’s job was to convince cities to buy Flock cameras. After initially being enthusiastic about the company, he started to get disillusioned.
404media.co
New: here's why a Flock employee quit. Says he was 'lied to' Jonathan Paz's job was to convince cities to buy Flock cameras. But then something changed and he realized he needed to get out of the company. Watch the full conversation here and subscribe for more: www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKYY...
UPDATE: After the publication of this piece, Google sent 404 Media a statement saying it was “rolling back this feature in Google Earth while we work on implementing stronger guardrails.” www.404media.co/google-earth...
Google Earth’s New AI Lets Anyone Fabricate Completely Bullshit Satellite Images
"Tonight I typed just one sentence into Google Earth and put refugees near the Mexican border. Then I planted a nuclear plant in Iran. Then I put a fatal crash on a street in Amsterdam."
404media.co
Update: Google just sent me a statement saying it is “rolling back” this AI feature that let anyone make completely bullshit satellite images. Comes after our demos of the tool and those from OSINT researchers. One of the worst AI tools I’ve ever seen bsky.app/profile/jose...
Joseph Cox@josephcox.bsky.social · 5d agoNew from 404 Media: Google Earth has introduced an AI feature that lets anyone fabricate completely bullshit satellite images. In our own tests, we added a “bomb blast and crater” to an area of Los Angeles. This is a misinformation time bomb, will 100% be abused www.404media.co/google-earth...
Google Earth's new AI feature lets anyone fabricate inaccurate satellite imagery, from making it look like a place has been drone striked to manifesting a nuclear plant in Iran. What could go wrong? @evystadium.bsky.social has more. Story @josephcox.bsky.social: www.404media.co/google-earth...
New from 404 Media: Google Earth has introduced an AI feature that lets anyone fabricate completely bullshit satellite images. In our own tests, we added a “bomb blast and crater” to an area of Los Angeles. This is a misinformation time bomb, will 100% be abused www.404media.co/google-earth...
New: YouTube banned a wave of ASMR artists this week for violating the platforms’ rules against “sexually gratifying” content, leaving creators confused and angry. “We have reviewed your content and found severe or repeated violations of our sex and nudity policy.” www.404media.co/youtube-asmr...
YouTube Bans Popular ASMR Artists, Accusing Them of Making 'Sexually Gratifying' Videos
YouTube told ASMR artists including Bunnii, Slight Sounds, Rose, and others that their content broke the platform's sex and nudity policy. Creators say these bans are unfair and potentially life-alter...
404media.co
IMPACT: that company that was offering to buy books for AI companies’ training data — and probably destroy them in the process — says it will no longer offer this service following 404 Media’s exposure of it www.404media.co/ai-company-t...
Company Offering Printed Books to Train AI Stops After 404 Media Coverage
Citing backlash, ISBNdb removed its webpages about training AI, denied ever buying, scanning, or selling a book for AI training, and said the site was a "test of market interest."
404media.co
This is happening in just over 30 minutes!!! At 1PM ET We're going to show you how to pry records from the government. This one is especially focused on city councils. Subscribers get the link here: www.404media.co/our-new-foia... Not a sub? Sign up now to get in
Our New FOIA Forum! 7/30, 1PM ET
Join us for our latest FOIA Forum where we teach you how to pry records from the government.
404media.co
This is an insane story about how a bunch of 20-somethings made a ton of AI slop to push supplements for a company that had an FDA recall. Turns out it's not really a supplement company at all; the same bros making the slop own the company. It's a fiction www.404media.co/inside-an-ai...
Inside an AI TikTok Shop Slop Factory That Shills Supplements Recalled By the FDA
How a company called Rosabella used AI content to market its supplements: "If you’re trying to sell health products to a 50-year-old, well, make your avatar 50 years old."
404media.co
Our new podcast episode this week features @josephcox.bsky.social of @404media.co discussing ICE's expanding surveillance tech arsenal:
ICE's Summer Spending Spree | On the Media | WNYC Studios
At the start of 2026, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, was top of mind for many Americans. There were nationwide protests, congressional hearings, and plenty of h...
wnycstudios.org
New: LinkedIn just introduced a "seems like AI slop" button. That's literally what the button says. The thought leaders are going to have a meltdown www.404media.co/linkedin-int...
LinkedIn Introduces a 'Seems Like AI Slop' Button
Following 404 Media's reporting on how LinkedIn is full of AI slop, the platform is giving users a chance to report it when they see it.
404media.co
“It was annoying,” the person arrested for clapping at a data center meeting told 404 Media. “My wife was on the way up to the podium. The time for my wife's speech hadn't even been reset yet.” www.404media.co/clapping-is-...
“Clapping Is a First Amendment Right:” An Interview With the Person Arrested for Clapping at a Data Center Meeting
"I have a right to speak. I'm here to speak. I have a right to clap, and if you want me out, you're going to have to drag me out."
404media.co
Bookmark this! Happening tomorrow!
404 Media@404media.co · 2w agoBy filing Freedom of Information requests, 404 Media has obtained bodycam footage and documents that uncover stories about tech that powers ICE and how cops abuse Flock. You can FOIA too! On July 30th at 1 pm ET, we will teach you how to file a FOIA request live: www.404media.co/our-new-foia...
so fucking tired of how socially acceptable it is, even encouraged, to film random people for no good reason at all other than clout and post it online. I cover surveillance all day every day and this shift sometimes scares me the most watch more/subscribe: www.youtube.com/watch?v=C0Sb...
New: I spoke to Samuel Tunick, the man the U.S. is charging with allegedly wiping his GrapheneOS phone before CBP could search it. “I hope people understand that the charges against me are meant to intimidate people against protecting their data and their privacy.” www.404media.co/the-governme...
‘The Government Hopes To Set a Precedent’: An Interview With the Man Charged for Allegedly Wiping His GrapheneOS Phone
The U.S. government has charged Samuel Tunick with allegedly typing in a passcode to wipe his phone before officers could search it. “I hope people understand that the charges against me are meant to ...
404media.co
Substack introduced a feature that detects AI writing. Well, because a ton of people on Substack use AI to write their newsletters, they're now calling the feature a "witch hunt" “I’m not going to apologize for using AI in the creation process.” www.404media.co/substackers-...
Substackers Say New AI Detection Tool Is a ‘Witch Hunt’
“I’m not going to apologize for using AI in the creation process.”
404media.co
Here's how one person spent hundreds of thousands of dollars to essentially get the world's location data, and introduced the government to the idea of buying location data harvested from ordinary apps installed on your phone Watch more and subscribe here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=rN4n...
Apple's iMessage scanning flagged a video of my friend's dog laying on her back as nudity; blurred it www.404media.co/apples-imess...
Apple’s iMessage Scanning Flagged a Video of My Friend's Dog as Nudity
Apple’s Sensitive Content Warning is supposed to protect users from unwanted nude images. It accidentally blurred my friend’s dog video.
404media.co
New from 404 Media: Wikimedia will not voluntarily recognize union a supermajority of its workers want Wikimedia waited until the days following its largest worldwide conference to issue a statement saying it would not voluntarily recognize a union of its workers. www.404media.co/wikimedia-wa...
Wikimedia Will Not Voluntarily Recognize Union a Supermajority of Its Workers Want
The Wikimedia Foundation waited until immediately after its largest annual conference to say it wouldn't voluntarily recognize its workers' union.
404media.co
New: a person opposing a data center was arrested for clapping at a city meeting Read more here: www.404media.co/person-oppos...