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☆ Sundar Pichai says ethicists and philosophers need to be involved in the development of AI to make sure it is moral, and doesn't do things like lie
  + stars: | 2023-04-17 | by ( Grace Dean | ) www.businessinsider.com   time to read: +4 min
AI development needs input from social scientists, ethicists, and philosophers, Sundar Pichai said. The Google CEO told CBS that AI systems need to be "aligned to human values, including morality." Social scientists, ethicists, and philosophers need to be involved in the development of AI, Google CEO Sundar Pichai told CBS' "60 Minutes." "This is why I think the development of this needs to include not just engineers, but social scientists, ethicists, philosophers, and so on." Though much of the buzz so far has been based on OpenAI's ChatGPT, Google is also developing Bard, its own AI chatbot.
☆ A new wave of robocallers are trying to scam crypto users — here's how the scam works and how to stop it
  + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( Madison Hall | ) www.businessinsider.com   time to read: +5 min
Robocallers are beginning to target cryptocurrency investors, spoofing calls from Coinbase. These scams are particularly risky for crypto investors, as reclaiming lost assets is difficult. Doug Shadel, the managing director of Fraud Prevention Strategies who works alongside Nomorobo, told Insider he's noticed several different types of scams from robocallers trying to bilk crypto investors. He said cryptocurrency scams have often become like a new-age version of gift card scams. Staying secureInsider spoke to representatives from both hardware wallet Ledger and cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase whose users were targeted by robocallers.
☆ A mother reportedly got a scam call saying her daughter had been kidnapped and she'd have to pay a ransom. The 'kidnapper' cloned the daughter's voice using AI.
  + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( Grace Dean | ) www.businessinsider.com   time to read: +4 min
A scammer reportedly used AI to clone a girl's voice in an attempt to get money from her mother. When she answered it, she could hear her 15-year-old daughter crying and saying things like, "mom, I messed up." DeStefano said that a man's voice then came on the line, telling her daughter to put her head back and lie down. "Listen here, I've got your daughter," the scammer reportedly said, according to DeStefano's account of the call. The voice "100%" belonged to her daughter, she told the local news site.
☆ Florida is ground zero for moving scams where companies demand extra fees — or steal your stuff
  + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Eliza Relman | ) www.businessinsider.com   time to read: +7 min
Moving company scams are on the rise, and almost half originate in Florida. But the Sunshine State is also increasingly home to scammers operating fraudulent moving companies targeting Florida residents and people across the country. No one's regulating," Susan Chana Lask, a New York-based consumer rights attorney who settled a lawsuit last year with a Florida-based moving company, told Insider. Her office announced last November that it had shut down 19 fraudulent moving companies and recovered $27 million in fines and restitution from the scammers. The sharp increase in moving scams across the country has also prompted the Biden administration to announce it's taking action.
☆ The FBI says you may want to think twice before plugging into a free phone-charging station
  + stars: | 2023-04-10 | by ( Samantha Delouya | ) www.businessinsider.com   time to read: +2 min
The FBI warned people to avoid using free phone-charging stations found in hotels, airports, and other public places. A Los Angeles deputy district attorney once warned that "a free charge could end up draining your bank account." Free phone-charging stations are often found in shopping centers, airports, and hotels. Some cities also offer free charging at public bus stops. Charging stations that have USB cords already plugged in could signal a hack, according to a report in the New York Times.
☆ French police have warned about an Irish gang posing as builders to defraud property owners, report says
  + stars: | 2023-04-09 | by ( Sam Tabahriti | ) www.businessinsider.com   time to read: +3 min
French police have warned about an Irish gang defrauding property owners by posing as builders. The gang offers to pave areas with tar at a far lower price than normal but the work is substandard. They actually belong to the Rathkeale Rovers, a criminal clan named after a town in Ireland. Some members of the Rathkeale Rovers were now living in France, authorities believe, acting as a "base" for the scammers, per Le Parisien. The French interior minister didn't immediately respond to a request for comment from Insider, made outside normal working hours.
☆ Meta's layoffs are affecting customer service and leaving influencers and businesses on Instagram and Facebook in the lurch, report says
  + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( Sawdah Bhaimiya | ) www.businessinsider.com   time to read: +5 min
Meta's mass layoffs have affected over 20,000 employees, including its customer support teams. One Instagram influencer told CNBC that her requests for support are going "into the void." The layoffs, which saw thousands of employees leave the company, affected staff in Meta's client support and customer experience and communities teams, former staff told CNBC. The company declined to provide comment to CNBC but provided the outlet with examples of its investment in customer service in recent years. The company has started building a customer service division, Bloomberg reported last year.
☆ I was sick of racist comments and scammers posing as my business online. Here's why I paid to get verified on Instagram.
  + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( Jennifer Ortakales Dawkins | ) www.businessinsider.com   time to read: +5 min
Adella Colvin has been targeted by racist comments and spam accounts on Instagram. To protect her yarn business, the founder signed up for Meta's verification program last week. Last week, Colvin applied for Meta's verification service, which grants individual and business accounts a blue check mark on their profiles for $15 a month. Meta did not respond to Insider's request for comment about Colvin's claims that she reported racist comments and impersonators in time for publication. I've been a target of racist comments and spam accounts on InstagramA lot of companies choose to keep their politics and personal beliefs out of their business.
☆ U.S. says decentralized finance services being used for illicit transfers
  + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com   time to read: +2 min
WASHINGTON, April 6 (Reuters) - North Korea, cybercriminals, ransomware attackers, thieves and scammers are using decentralized finance (DeFi) services to transfer and launder their illicit proceeds, the U.S. Treasury Department warned on Thursday. In a new illicit finance risk assessment on decentralized finance, the Treasury found that illicit actors are exploiting vulnerabilities in U.S. and foreign anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) regulation and enforcement as well the technology underpinning the services. DeFi services that fail to comply with these obligations to prevent money laundering and terrorism financing pose the most significant illicit finance risk in this domain, the assessment found. "Our assessment finds that illicit actors, including criminals, scammers, and North Korean cyber actors are using DeFi services in the process of laundering illicit funds," the Treasury's Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, Brian Nelson, said in the statement. Nelson added that the private sector should use the findings of the assessment to inform their risk mitigation strategies and to take steps to prevent illicit actors from using decentralized finance services.
☆ Meta's job cuts are gutting customer service, leaving influencers and businesses with nobody to call
  + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Jonathan Vanian | ) www.cnbc.com   time to read: +13 min
As part of the company's two rounds of layoffs, equaling roughly 21,000 job cuts, Meta gutted wide swaths of its customer service operation, leaving influencers and businesses with nobody to contact about their accounts. CNBC spoke with influencers, small businesses and Meta account managers as well as a half-dozen former contractors and former Meta employees about the deterioration in customer service at the company since the job cuts began in November. Holliday said it appears that the only people who get customer service are those who represent a company that's spending heavily on advertising. However, some influencers say Facebook has had such poor customer service that there's no reason to pay for it. After all the problems she's experienced, Karlova questions whether Meta will be able to provide better customer service.
☆ I've been a fortune teller since I was 4 years old. I've had plenty of skeptics — but for me, it's not about predicting the future.
  + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( Melissa Petro | ) www.businessinsider.com   time to read: +6 min
Jezmina Von Thiel is a fortune teller from Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Von Thiel began her training as a fortune teller at age 4, and started working professionally at 16. I started my fortune teller training when I was just 4 years oldRoma are a diasporic ethnic group originally from Northern India around the 10th century. Courtesy of Jezmina Von ThielMy grandmother taught me that fortune telling was something that I could always fall back on if needed. Fortune telling is an undeniable part of the history, culture, and achievements of our people.
☆ It's becoming increasingly clear that fintech has a fraud problem
  + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( Bianca Chan | Paige Hagy | ) www.businessinsider.com   time to read: +8 min
"With fast growth comes fast fraud," Frank McKenna, a longtime fraud expert who works with banks, lenders, and fintechs, told Insider. Cash App only requires a zip code, debit-card number, and either an email or phone number to create an account. Cash App's alleged fraud problem could also be the result of its large, active customer base, which numbers some 44 million, according to the company's 2022 annual report. The fact that Cash App offers peer-to-peer payments exacerbates the fraud issue, according to McKenna, the chief fraud strategist at Point Predictive, an anti-fraud software company. Digital-only bank Chime has had its own issues with fraud, Jason Mikula, a fintech analyst and consultant, told Insider.
☆ Musk’s Twitter markdown falls short of the mark
  + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( Lauren Silva Laughlin | ) www.reuters.com   time to read: +3 min
The billionaire owner of Twitter has offered stock grants to the social media app’s shrunken staff at a valuation of about $20 billion, less than half the price he paid in October. In fact, based on Twitter’s operating performance, the effects of leverage and public market comparisons, the equity is probably worthless. Net out $13 billion of debt, as of January, and equity holders are left with just over $20 billion, or about the figure reported over the weekend by The Information. First, Twitter wasn’t generating consistent earnings before Musk bought it, and so it’s hard to believe it’s doing so now. Back out the debt and the equity is less than zero, assuming their cash position hasn’t meaningfully changed.
☆ Amazon seller consultant admits to bribing employees to help clients; will plead guilty
  + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( Annie Palmer | ) www.cnbc.com   time to read: +5 min
An influential consultant for Amazon sellers admitted Monday to bribing employees of the e-commerce giant for information to help his clients boost sales and to get their suspended accounts reinstated. "On some occasions, I paid bribes, directly and indirectly, to Amazon employees to obtain annotations and reinstate suspended accounts. Behind the scenes, scammers have for years resorted to illicit tactics to squash competitors, artificially boost their listings or bypass Amazon's marketplace rules. "No one should pay bribes to Amazon employees to provide private Amazon information," Rosenberg wrote on Monday. Nor should anyone pay any Amazon employees for any other special favors regarding a seller's account."
☆ Companies say Elon Musk's plan to charge $1,000 for month for Twitter checkmarks is 'outlandish' and makes them 'meaningless'
  + stars: | 2023-03-26 | by ( Kate Duffy | ) www.businessinsider.com   time to read: +3 min
Companies have hit out at Elon Musk for charging them $1,000 a month to stay verified on Twitter. Twitter plans to make users and organizations on Twitter pay to keep their blue checkmark. Twitter said it's planning to remove legacy verified blue ticks from users' accounts starting on April 1 — that's April Fools' day. He said the bedding firm wouldn't miss being verified because the blue checkmark didn't offer a noticeable boost in engagement. Among the Twitter users that criticized the change was Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
☆ Report claims 'criminal activity and fraud run rampant' on Cash App—what users need to know
  + stars: | 2023-03-24 | by ( Kamaron Mcnair | ) www.cnbc.com   time to read: +1 min
A new report from Hindenburg Research, a short seller investment firm, released Thursday has accused Block — the company formerly known as Square, founded by Jack Dorsey — of allowing crime and fraud to "run rampant" on its peer-to-peer payment app, Cash App. The report alleged that Block inflated its customer growth, allowed fake accounts to thrive and dodged revenue regulations — an accusation that triggered a Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) investigation. Hindenburg claims it was able to open fake accounts on Cash App under names Donald Trump and Elon Musk. Block called the report "factually inaccurate" in a statement, and says it is complying with the SEC and exploring legal action against Hindenburg. It's worth noting last March, Block revealed it was the subject of a Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) investigation over the way Cash App handles user complaints.
☆ A prominent short-seller just released a bombshell report on payments darling Block. Here are the 4 biggest claims.
  + stars: | 2023-03-23 | by ( Carla Mozée | ) www.businessinsider.com   time to read: +5 min
Hindenburg Research on Thursday released a scathing report about Block, saying it inflated metrics. The short-seller financial research firm led by Nathan Anderson said it has taken a short position on Block shares after its two-year probe. The firm also said it ordered and "promptly received Our Donald J. Trump Visa Cash App card in the mail." It saw multiple Cash App accounts bearing the name "Jack Dorsey" as well as dozens of "Elon Musk"' and "Donald Trump'" fake accounts as well. "The only payment provider mentioned in the indictment was Cash App, which was used to facilitate the fraudulent COVID relief payments," wrote Hindenburg.
☆ Shoppers say secondhand stores like Goodwill are getting too expensive as Gen Z makes thrifting cool
  + stars: | 2023-03-21 | by ( Mary Hanbury | ) www.businessinsider.com   time to read: +4 min
TikTokers are complaining about high prices in secondhand stores like Goodwill and Salvation Army. The US thrift market has grown substantially in recent years and thrifting has become a popular pursuit of Gen Z shoppers, who have been credited with championing a more sustainable way to shop. But Gen Z shoppers aren't only buying secondhand items for themselves. That is a dubious delineation when it comes to major secondhand clothing corporations," Jennifer Le Zotte, an assistant professor at the University of North Carolina Wilmington told Vox. 23-year-old Stefani Colvin, who has been thrifting since 2016, told Insider that prices have been gradually on the rise in thrift stores.
☆ Romance Scams Are Booming — Especially on Facebook and Instagram
  + stars: | 2023-03-20 | by ( Eve Upton-Clark | ) www.businessinsider.com   time to read: +13 min
Americans lost $1.3 billion to romance scams last year — an 164% increase from 2019 — and $3.3 billion in total since the start of the pandemic. According to the FTC report, the most popular way scammers reached out to their victims last year was through Instagram (29%) and Facebook (28%). And as these schemes get more widespread and more complex, the number of people falling for romance scams keeps growing. Confluence of crypto and romanceIf loneliness was the reason "why" for the soaring number of romance scams, then crypto is the "how." 1 payment method for romance scams last year was cryptocurrency.
☆ Twitter's major security change is just days away: Follow these steps to secure your account
  + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( Nicolas Vega | ) www.cnbc.com   time to read: +2 min
If you haven't updated the security settings on your Twitter account yet, the clock is ticking. Fortunately, switching your 2FA settings is a quick, easy and free process that will take you no more than a few minutes. Here's what you need to know to make sure your Twitter account is secure. First, you will want to go to the settings page on your Twitter app or on the desktop site and select "security and account access." What happens if I don't change my security settings?
☆ As a credit card expert, here are 7 scenarios where I ditch my card in favor of other payment options
  + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( Peter Rothbart | Jasmin Baron | Freelance Writer | ) www.businessinsider.com   time to read: +12 min
Our experts answer readers' credit card questions and write unbiased product reviews (here's how we assess credit cards). However, some vendors make that cost explicit by tacking on a fixed fee or percentage of the transaction to credit card payments. To avoid getting scammedMany credit card scams involve cardholders being victimized after willfully handing over their card or account information. To buy cash equivalentsMany credit cards offer cash advances, which allow you to borrow cash against your credit limit. Her credit history was pristine, but she only had two credit cards with low credit limits that she nearly exhausted each month on business and personal expenses.
☆ U.S. FTC asks social media, video streaming firms info on misleading ads
  + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com   time to read: +1 min
March 16 (Reuters) - The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) on Thursday issued orders to eight social media and video streaming firms including Meta Platforms Inc (META.O), Twitter, TikTok and YouTube seeking information on how the platforms screen for misleading advertisements. The companies did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comment. "Social media has been a gold mine for scammers who tout sham products and other scams that have cost consumers enormously in recent years," said Samuel Levine, director of the FTC's consumer protection bureau. "This study will help the FTC ensure that social media and video streaming companies are doing everything they can to keep scammers and deceptive ads off their platforms." read moreReporting by Eva Mathews in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju SamuelOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
☆ Americans Lost a Record $10.3 Billion to Online Scammers Last Year, FBI Says
  + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Gareth Vipers | ) www.wsj.com   time to read: 1 min
The Federal Bureau of Investigation said Americans’ losses to online scammers rose to $10.3 billion last year from $6.9 billion in 2021. Americans lost more than $10 billion to online scammers last year, new government data show, the highest level since the Federal Bureau of Investigation began tracking losses in 2000. The FBI said its Internet Crime Complaint Center, or IC3, recorded more than 800,000 complaints in 2022, or more than 2,000 complaints a day.
☆ The 'mother of all moral hazards': economist Nouriel Roubini cheers the demise of banks with ties to the crypto industry
  + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( Morgan Chittum | ) www.businessinsider.com   time to read: +2 min
In a series of tweets, he described the government's decision to backstop losses for depositors of Signature as "sickening." Silicon Valley Bank, Silvergate, and Signature have all closed in quick succession, with the cryptocurrency industry facing the loss of three of its most important banking partners. In an series of tweets on Monday, Roubini cheered the demise of the crypto-friendly banks. Roubini added that the government's decision to backstop losses for depositors of Signature Bank is just "sickening." "What is the logic of protecting the depositors of Signature Bank, a bank that recklessly decided to jump into the crappy crypto cesspool & bet the house on shitcoins biz?"
☆ Scammers are creating fake “ChatGPT” and “Bing” crypto tokens—here’s how to protect yourself
  + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( Cheyenne Devon | ) www.cnbc.com   time to read: +2 min
Scammers are trying to cash in on the hype surrounding popular artificial intelligence chatbots including OpenAI's ChatGPT and Microsoft's Bing AI. A search on DEXTools, an interactive crypto trading platform that tracks prices, reveals about 287 tokens that mention "ChatGPT" in their name. They then promote the coin and convince investors to pour money into it in order to drive the price higher. The firm has identified at least one of those digital coins as having been created by a user notorious for "pump and dump" crypto schemes. Scam crypto tokens are commonly deployed on "permissionless blockchains" also known as public blockchains, says Chen Arad, chief operating officer at Solidus Labs, a cryptocurrency risk monitoring and market surveillance company.
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