Andy Greenberg
@agreenberg.bsky.social
Writer for WIRED. Author of SANDWORM. Latest book, TRACERS IN THE DARK: The Global Hunt for the Crime Lords of Cryptocurrency, out now. [email protected]. Andy.01 on Signal.
Pinned
He Leaked the Secrets of a Southeast Asian Scam Compound. Then He Had to Get Out Alive
A source trapped inside an industrial-scale scamming operation contacted me, determined to expose his captors’ crimes—and then escape. This is his story.
www.wired.com
Last year, a human trafficking victim trapped in a crypto scam compound in the Golden Triangle region of Laos contacted me. He then proceeded to leak to me a huge collection of the compound's internal materials.
Then he had to get out alive. This is his story.
🧵👇 www.wired.com/story/he-lea...
Then he had to get out alive. This is his story.
🧵👇 www.wired.com/story/he-lea...
Reposted by Andy Greenberg
A couple fascinating things I learned reporting this:
1. Much of the plant life on the field was people in costume.
2. The finale required 9,852 theatrical pyrotechnics.
3. That was a real couple that got married during the Lady Gaga number.
So many more details here in the piece. Go read!
1. Much of the plant life on the field was people in costume.
2. The finale required 9,852 theatrical pyrotechnics.
3. That was a real couple that got married during the Lady Gaga number.
So many more details here in the piece. Go read!
That Super Bowl halftime show was beyond incredible, and fun. Here’s the story of how it came together, complete with beautiful photos from @d-jacks.bsky.social.
www.wired.com/story/bad-bu...
www.wired.com/story/bad-bu...
Inside Bad Bunny’s Historic Super Bowl Halftime Show
Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl performance required 9,852 theatrical pyrotechnics, nearly 400 costumed extras, and a lot of ingenuity. And yes, that was a real couple featured in the wedding.
www.wired.com
February 9, 2026 at 3:05 AM
A couple fascinating things I learned reporting this:
1. Much of the plant life on the field was people in costume.
2. The finale required 9,852 theatrical pyrotechnics.
3. That was a real couple that got married during the Lady Gaga number.
So many more details here in the piece. Go read!
1. Much of the plant life on the field was people in costume.
2. The finale required 9,852 theatrical pyrotechnics.
3. That was a real couple that got married during the Lady Gaga number.
So many more details here in the piece. Go read!
Reminder that the Washington Post lost 250,000 subscribers, more than most outlets will ever have, after its decision not to publish an endorsement in the last election. www.npr.org/2024/10/29/n...
That kind of cowardice, not AI or whatever, is what's "drastically reshaping" readers' expectations.
That kind of cowardice, not AI or whatever, is what's "drastically reshaping" readers' expectations.
February 4, 2026 at 6:41 PM
Reminder that the Washington Post lost 250,000 subscribers, more than most outlets will ever have, after its decision not to publish an endorsement in the last election. www.npr.org/2024/10/29/n...
That kind of cowardice, not AI or whatever, is what's "drastically reshaping" readers' expectations.
That kind of cowardice, not AI or whatever, is what's "drastically reshaping" readers' expectations.
Senator Maggie Hassan has responded to our story about Bondu’s lack of security around kids’ AI toy chat transcripts by sending a letter to the company asking 10 detailed questions about its privacy practices. She calls its exposure of kids’ data “devastating.” www.jec.senate.gov/public/_cach...
February 3, 2026 at 2:56 PM
Senator Maggie Hassan has responded to our story about Bondu’s lack of security around kids’ AI toy chat transcripts by sending a letter to the company asking 10 detailed questions about its privacy practices. She calls its exposure of kids’ data “devastating.” www.jec.senate.gov/public/_cach...
Here's our 25-min video news-documentary version of the story of Red Bull, the whistleblower who leaked me the secrets of a crypto scam compound while trapped as a forced laborer inside it. www.youtube.com/watch?v=zOcN...
Hope you'll watch and consider the immense scale of this global crisis.
Hope you'll watch and consider the immense scale of this global crisis.
February 2, 2026 at 4:56 PM
Here's our 25-min video news-documentary version of the story of Red Bull, the whistleblower who leaked me the secrets of a crypto scam compound while trapped as a forced laborer inside it. www.youtube.com/watch?v=zOcN...
Hope you'll watch and consider the immense scale of this global crisis.
Hope you'll watch and consider the immense scale of this global crisis.
Reposted by Andy Greenberg
NEW: The @wired.com Security desk put together a comprehensive guide to filming ICE—with tips for reducing risk at the forefront. No paywall, but please consider subscribing to help find these kinds of resources. And stay safe out there. www.wired.com/story/how-to...
www.wired.com/v2/offers/wi...
www.wired.com/v2/offers/wi...
How to Film ICE
Filming federal agents in public is legal, but avoiding a dangerous—even deadly—confrontation isn’t guaranteed. Here’s how to record ICE and CBP agents as safely as possible and have an impact.
www.wired.com
January 31, 2026 at 10:55 AM
NEW: The @wired.com Security desk put together a comprehensive guide to filming ICE—with tips for reducing risk at the forefront. No paywall, but please consider subscribing to help find these kinds of resources. And stay safe out there. www.wired.com/story/how-to...
www.wired.com/v2/offers/wi...
www.wired.com/v2/offers/wi...
For those who read our piece about crypto scam compound whistleblower Red Bull, I've verified that this is his real Bluesky account below.
Thank for your incredible courage and all your work to achieve justice, @mohammadmuzahir02.bsky.social.
Thank for your incredible courage and all your work to achieve justice, @mohammadmuzahir02.bsky.social.
This wasn’t easy to share, but it mattered.
Thanks to WIRED for documenting what I witnessed.
It shows what’s happening behind online scam operations.
Thanks to WIRED for documenting what I witnessed.
It shows what’s happening behind online scam operations.
Last year, a human trafficking victim trapped in a crypto scam compound in the Golden Triangle region of Laos contacted me. He then proceeded to leak to me a huge collection of the compound's internal materials.
Then he had to get out alive. This is his story.
🧵👇 www.wired.com/story/he-lea...
Then he had to get out alive. This is his story.
🧵👇 www.wired.com/story/he-lea...
January 30, 2026 at 2:07 PM
For those who read our piece about crypto scam compound whistleblower Red Bull, I've verified that this is his real Bluesky account below.
Thank for your incredible courage and all your work to achieve justice, @mohammadmuzahir02.bsky.social.
Thank for your incredible courage and all your work to achieve justice, @mohammadmuzahir02.bsky.social.
Reposted by Andy Greenberg
The AI-chat-enabled stuffed toy Bondu invites little kids to have intimate conversations with it, like an LLM imaginary friend. It also exposed virtually all their chats on a web interface with no security. Anyone with a Gmail account could log in and read transcripts. www.wired.com/story/an-ai-...
An AI Toy Exposed 50,000 Logs of Its Chats With Kids to Anyone With a Gmail Account
AI chat toy company Bondu left its web console almost entirely unprotected. Researchers who accessed it found nearly all the conversations children had had with the company's stuffed animals.
www.wired.com
January 29, 2026 at 5:02 PM
The AI-chat-enabled stuffed toy Bondu invites little kids to have intimate conversations with it, like an LLM imaginary friend. It also exposed virtually all their chats on a web interface with no security. Anyone with a Gmail account could log in and read transcripts. www.wired.com/story/an-ai-...
The AI-chat-enabled stuffed toy Bondu invites little kids to have intimate conversations with it, like an LLM imaginary friend. It also exposed virtually all their chats on a web interface with no security. Anyone with a Gmail account could log in and read transcripts. www.wired.com/story/an-ai-...
An AI Toy Exposed 50,000 Logs of Its Chats With Kids to Anyone With a Gmail Account
AI chat toy company Bondu left its web console almost entirely unprotected. Researchers who accessed it found nearly all the conversations children had had with the company's stuffed animals.
www.wired.com
January 29, 2026 at 5:02 PM
The AI-chat-enabled stuffed toy Bondu invites little kids to have intimate conversations with it, like an LLM imaginary friend. It also exposed virtually all their chats on a web interface with no security. Anyone with a Gmail account could log in and read transcripts. www.wired.com/story/an-ai-...
Reposted by Andy Greenberg
A lot is happening right now. Hope you'll still take a moment to read WIRED's story of Red Bull's incredible work as a whistleblower, our analysis of the evidence he shared, the details of his ordeal inside a modern slavery operation, and how he finally got home. /end www.wired.com/story/he-lea...
He Leaked the Secrets of a Southeast Asian Scam Compound. Then He Had to Get Out Alive
A source trapped inside an industrial-scale scamming operation contacted me, determined to expose his captors’ crimes—and then escape. This is his story.
www.wired.com
January 27, 2026 at 12:15 PM
A lot is happening right now. Hope you'll still take a moment to read WIRED's story of Red Bull's incredible work as a whistleblower, our analysis of the evidence he shared, the details of his ordeal inside a modern slavery operation, and how he finally got home. /end www.wired.com/story/he-lea...
Reposted by Andy Greenberg
Red Bull's leaks to me were never detected. But when he tried to escape, this story became a nightmare. He was caught by his bosses, beaten, kicked, drugged and then starved for weeks. Only when the compound had to move to evade an impending police raid would he seize an opportunity to get free.
January 27, 2026 at 12:15 PM
Red Bull's leaks to me were never detected. But when he tried to escape, this story became a nightmare. He was caught by his bosses, beaten, kicked, drugged and then starved for weeks. Only when the compound had to move to evade an impending police raid would he seize an opportunity to get free.
Reposted by Andy Greenberg
Red Bull later shared hours of screenrecordings as he scrolled through the compound's internal WhatsApp groups. We at WIRED converted the videos into 4,200 pages of screenshotted chats that reveal the daily operations of a scam compound at a level never seen before. www.wired.com/story/the-re...
Revealed: Leaked Chats Expose the Daily Life of a Scam Compound’s Enslaved Workforce
A whistleblower trapped inside a “pig butchering” scam compound gave WIRED a vast trove of its internal materials—including 4,200 pages of messages that lay out its operations in unprecedented detail.
www.wired.com
January 27, 2026 at 12:15 PM
Red Bull later shared hours of screenrecordings as he scrolled through the compound's internal WhatsApp groups. We at WIRED converted the videos into 4,200 pages of screenshotted chats that reveal the daily operations of a scam compound at a level never seen before. www.wired.com/story/the-re...
Reposted by Andy Greenberg
Red Bull was determined to expose everything he could about his captors: their scamming systems, scripts, guides, org chart, photos, even videos he secretly recorded. This clip inside the office shows colored flags on teams of workers' desks, connoting whether they met their scam quotas that month.
January 27, 2026 at 12:15 PM
Red Bull was determined to expose everything he could about his captors: their scamming systems, scripts, guides, org chart, photos, even videos he secretly recorded. This clip inside the office shows colored flags on teams of workers' desks, connoting whether they met their scam quotas that month.
Reposted by Andy Greenberg
Crypto romance scams are the most lucrative form of cybercrime in the world today, stealing tens of billions of dollars a year from victims. But the scammers, workers enslaved in Chinese-mafia-run compounds, are victims too.
My new source was one of them. He asked me to call him Red Bull.
My new source was one of them. He asked me to call him Red Bull.
January 27, 2026 at 12:15 PM
Crypto romance scams are the most lucrative form of cybercrime in the world today, stealing tens of billions of dollars a year from victims. But the scammers, workers enslaved in Chinese-mafia-run compounds, are victims too.
My new source was one of them. He asked me to call him Red Bull.
My new source was one of them. He asked me to call him Red Bull.
Reposted by Andy Greenberg
Last year, a human trafficking victim trapped in a crypto scam compound in the Golden Triangle region of Laos contacted me. He then proceeded to leak to me a huge collection of the compound's internal materials.
Then he had to get out alive. This is his story.
🧵👇 www.wired.com/story/he-lea...
Then he had to get out alive. This is his story.
🧵👇 www.wired.com/story/he-lea...
He Leaked the Secrets of a Southeast Asian Scam Compound. Then He Had to Get Out Alive
A source trapped inside an industrial-scale scamming operation contacted me, determined to expose his captors’ crimes—and then escape. This is his story.
www.wired.com
January 27, 2026 at 12:15 PM
Last year, a human trafficking victim trapped in a crypto scam compound in the Golden Triangle region of Laos contacted me. He then proceeded to leak to me a huge collection of the compound's internal materials.
Then he had to get out alive. This is his story.
🧵👇 www.wired.com/story/he-lea...
Then he had to get out alive. This is his story.
🧵👇 www.wired.com/story/he-lea...
Reposted by Andy Greenberg
NEW: The firm behind the Mobile Fortify app, which ICE and CBP use for running facial recognition scans on the public, was revealed today to be NEC, according to DHS docs reviewed by @wired.com. NEC makes its of face rec platform called Reveal. @regret.bsky.social & @dell.bsky.social with the scoop:
Here's the Company That Sold DHS ICE's Notorious Face Recognition App
Immigration agents have used Mobile Fortify to scan the faces of countless people in the US—including many citizens.
www.wired.com
January 28, 2026 at 8:22 PM
NEW: The firm behind the Mobile Fortify app, which ICE and CBP use for running facial recognition scans on the public, was revealed today to be NEC, according to DHS docs reviewed by @wired.com. NEC makes its of face rec platform called Reveal. @regret.bsky.social & @dell.bsky.social with the scoop:
Last year, a human trafficking victim trapped in a crypto scam compound in the Golden Triangle region of Laos contacted me. He then proceeded to leak to me a huge collection of the compound's internal materials.
Then he had to get out alive. This is his story.
🧵👇 www.wired.com/story/he-lea...
Then he had to get out alive. This is his story.
🧵👇 www.wired.com/story/he-lea...
He Leaked the Secrets of a Southeast Asian Scam Compound. Then He Had to Get Out Alive
A source trapped inside an industrial-scale scamming operation contacted me, determined to expose his captors’ crimes—and then escape. This is his story.
www.wired.com
January 27, 2026 at 12:15 PM
Last year, a human trafficking victim trapped in a crypto scam compound in the Golden Triangle region of Laos contacted me. He then proceeded to leak to me a huge collection of the compound's internal materials.
Then he had to get out alive. This is his story.
🧵👇 www.wired.com/story/he-lea...
Then he had to get out alive. This is his story.
🧵👇 www.wired.com/story/he-lea...
Insane. But there’s also no statute of limitations for murder in this country.
CBP chief Bovino has confirmed that the officers who executed Alex Pretti in the street yesterday are not only *not on administrative leave,* they have all been reassigned to other jurisdictions and are all on the street today.
This is totally unheard of for any officer-involved shooting
This is totally unheard of for any officer-involved shooting
January 25, 2026 at 9:12 PM
Insane. But there’s also no statute of limitations for murder in this country.
Reposted by Andy Greenberg
ICE complains about 'doxing' any time one of their officers is identified. Meanwhile at least 1,000 of them are apparently putting ICE right there in their LinkedIn profiles. from
@regret.bsky.social
@regret.bsky.social
ICE Agents Are ‘Doxing’ Themselves
The alleged risks of being publicly identified have not stopped DHS and ICE employees from creating profiles on LinkedIn, even as Kristi Noem threatens to treat revealing agents' identities as a crim...
www.wired.com
January 22, 2026 at 5:47 PM
ICE complains about 'doxing' any time one of their officers is identified. Meanwhile at least 1,000 of them are apparently putting ICE right there in their LinkedIn profiles. from
@regret.bsky.social
@regret.bsky.social
Reposted by Andy Greenberg
🇨🇳 new issue is here! Behold: The China Issue. It hasn't escaped @wired.com's attention that one superpower is surging forward while the other one is trying to annex Greenland. Here are 23 ways that China has become the future www.wired.com/china-issue/
23 Ways You’re Already Living in the Chinese Century
The robotics explosion. The energy revolution. The cultural takeover. It’s everything you wanted for the United States—but done better in China.
www.wired.com
January 20, 2026 at 1:21 PM
🇨🇳 new issue is here! Behold: The China Issue. It hasn't escaped @wired.com's attention that one superpower is surging forward while the other one is trying to annex Greenland. Here are 23 ways that China has become the future www.wired.com/china-issue/
Reposted by Andy Greenberg
WIRED spoke to 10 residents in Minneapolis about what life has been like for them since ICE seized the city. I know there's a lot of coverage out there, but spend time with this heart wrenching piece:
‘I’m Witnessing a Lot of Emptiness’: How ICE Uprooted Normal Life in Minneapolis
WIRED talks to a postal worker, a teacher, two US citizens detained by federal agents, and six more Minnesota residents about life in an occupied American city.
www.wired.com
January 21, 2026 at 1:45 PM
WIRED spoke to 10 residents in Minneapolis about what life has been like for them since ICE seized the city. I know there's a lot of coverage out there, but spend time with this heart wrenching piece:
Reposted by Andy Greenberg
New: meet ELITE, the Palantir app ICE is using to find neighborhoods to raid. Map interface; officers search for immigrants; click person to bring up individual dossier. This is clearest link between what Palantir is building and ICE's activities on the ground yet www.404media.co/elite-the-pa...
‘ELITE’: The Palantir App ICE Uses to Find Neighborhoods to Raid
Internal ICE material and testimony from an official obtained by 404 Media provides the clearest link yet between the technological infrastructure Palantir is building for ICE and the agency’s activit...
www.404media.co
January 15, 2026 at 2:06 PM
New: meet ELITE, the Palantir app ICE is using to find neighborhoods to raid. Map interface; officers search for immigrants; click person to bring up individual dossier. This is clearest link between what Palantir is building and ICE's activities on the ground yet www.404media.co/elite-the-pa...
This was caused by flawed implementations of Google's Fast Pair one-tap Bluetooth protocol. But it doesn't just affect Android users. Anyone (yes, iPhone users) with audio accessories from Sony, Jabra, JBL, Marshall, Xiaomi, Nothing, OnePlus, Soundcore, Logitech, and Google itself may be vulnerable.
Hundreds of millions of earbuds, headphones and speakers need a security update (yes, you need to update your earbuds) to prevent a wireless hacking technique that can hijack audio, eavesdrop via mics, and in some cases remotely track the accessory’s location. www.wired.com/story/google...
Hundreds of Millions of Audio Devices Need a Patch to Prevent Wireless Hacking and Tracking
Flaws in how 17 models of headphones and speakers use Google’s one-tap Fast Pair Bluetooth protocol have left devices open to eavesdroppers and stalkers.
www.wired.com
January 15, 2026 at 5:16 PM
This was caused by flawed implementations of Google's Fast Pair one-tap Bluetooth protocol. But it doesn't just affect Android users. Anyone (yes, iPhone users) with audio accessories from Sony, Jabra, JBL, Marshall, Xiaomi, Nothing, OnePlus, Soundcore, Logitech, and Google itself may be vulnerable.
Tired: Google Fast Pair one-tap Bluetooth connections
Wired: wired
Wired: wired
Hundreds of millions of earbuds, headphones and speakers need a security update (yes, you need to update your earbuds) to prevent a wireless hacking technique that can hijack audio, eavesdrop via mics, and in some cases remotely track the accessory’s location. www.wired.com/story/google...
Hundreds of Millions of Audio Devices Need a Patch to Prevent Wireless Hacking and Tracking
Flaws in how 17 models of headphones and speakers use Google’s one-tap Fast Pair Bluetooth protocol have left devices open to eavesdroppers and stalkers.
www.wired.com
January 15, 2026 at 1:45 PM
Tired: Google Fast Pair one-tap Bluetooth connections
Wired: wired
Wired: wired
Hundreds of millions of earbuds, headphones and speakers need a security update (yes, you need to update your earbuds) to prevent a wireless hacking technique that can hijack audio, eavesdrop via mics, and in some cases remotely track the accessory’s location. www.wired.com/story/google...
Hundreds of Millions of Audio Devices Need a Patch to Prevent Wireless Hacking and Tracking
Flaws in how 17 models of headphones and speakers use Google’s one-tap Fast Pair Bluetooth protocol have left devices open to eavesdroppers and stalkers.
www.wired.com
January 15, 2026 at 12:12 PM
Hundreds of millions of earbuds, headphones and speakers need a security update (yes, you need to update your earbuds) to prevent a wireless hacking technique that can hijack audio, eavesdrop via mics, and in some cases remotely track the accessory’s location. www.wired.com/story/google...
Reposted by Andy Greenberg
The @wired.com guide to ICE invading your neighborhood:
What to Do If ICE Invades Your Neighborhood
With federal agents storming the streets of American communities, there's no single right way to approach this dangerous moment. But there are steps you can take to stay safe—and have an impact.
www.wired.com
January 13, 2026 at 10:56 AM
The @wired.com guide to ICE invading your neighborhood: