Sam Cole @samleecole.bsky.social · 15hbrian if I were to start with one album to get into the dead where should I begin 110
Reposted by Sam ColeSpencer Ackerman @attackerman.bsky.social · 17h“‘Many senior engineers believe it’s inevitable we’re going to have a massive data breach as a result of Hatch.’ Muse is called ‘Hatch’ internally and in Meta’s codebase.” @404media.co404media.coMeta Rushed to Fix Muse ‘VM Escape' Vulnerability Soon Before LaunchThe vulnerability could have let a Muse user access sensitive internal Meta databases. 39333
Sam Cole @samleecole.bsky.social · 17htoday I'm thinking (proudly) of all the journalism indies that have gone out on their own in the last few years without half a million dollars worth of cushion 0638
Sam Cole @samleecole.bsky.social · 01/10/2026have started just directly telling the juveniles doing comms for ai agent platforms that they're being super annoying and then blocking them 🤷 1382
Sam Cole @samleecole.bsky.social · 30/09/2026there's this impression, I think, that AI-generated abuse imagery is hiding and hard to find. in reality, it's being propped up by some of the biggest internet infrastructure companies in the world. very interesting new report: www.404media.co/deepfake-abu...404media.coInternet Infrastructure Services Empower Deepfake Abuse, New Study FindsCloudflare, Google, and Proton were among the "dominant" infrastructure providers to sites dedicated to hosting abusive content, the study found. 01911
Sam Cole @samleecole.bsky.social · 30/09/2026getting pepcom holiday expo emails makes me nostalgic for the time when I would go to literally anything if it promised free alcohol and snacks 1100
Reposted by Sam ColeJason Koebler @jasonkoebler.bsky.social · 30/09/2026New: Through a series of complex agreements with cities, the White House built a massive license plate camera database accessible to the feds. The program aggregates data across license plate companies (Flock, Axon, more) & is searchable by many agencies: www.404media.co/how-cities-a...404media.coHow Cities Are Forced to Funnel License Plate Data to a Massive Federal Surveillance ProgramHow the federal government built a massive database of license plate reader data through an anti-drug trafficking program. 8177133
Sam Cole @samleecole.bsky.social · 29/09/2026we should have killed this bastard when we had the chance 815929
Sam Cole @samleecole.bsky.social · 29/09/2026probably fine that all these new ai agent rollouts are so cutesy and childish. probably a sign of innocuous, normal shit 525071
Reposted by Sam ColeJoseph Cox @josephcox.bsky.social · 28/09/2026New from 404 Media: the group that hacked the FBI and stole data on "all FBI employees" says it won't publish the data. The group gave the FBI a one week countdown. Now says won't publish at all. Still represents a massive national security/counterintelligence risk www.404media.co/fbi-hackers-...404media.coFBI Hackers Say They Won’t Publish Massive Trove of FBI Employee DataShinyHunters, the group that stole data on “all FBI employees” including addresses and details on their spouses, told 404 Media on Monday “Since the very beginning we had made our decision that we wou... 79531
Reposted by Sam Cole404 Media @404media.co · 28/09/2026Human contractors are reviewing Copilot users’ prompts and uploaded images, 404 Media has learned. The contractors are also bombarded with users’ requests for sexual AI images. @evystadium.bsky.social has more. Sccop here by @josephcox.bsky.social: www.404media.co/humans-readi... 12464227
Reposted by Sam ColeJoseph Cox @josephcox.bsky.social · 28/09/2026New from 404 Media: when you upload images to Copilot, they're not private. Human contractors are reviewing Copilot users' prompts/images, according to internal docs we got And they're horrified at what they're seeing. Bombarded with requests to make sexual AI images www.404media.co/humans-readi...404media.coHumans Are Reading Copilot Prompts — And They're HorrifiedHuman contractors are reviewing Copilot users’ prompts and uploaded images, according to internal documents obtained by 404 Media. The contractors are also bombarded with users’ requests for sexual AI... 14665345
Sam Cole @samleecole.bsky.social · 25/09/2026I don't think any journalist is seeing a driveby 750 word chatgpt-generated grievance about a banned instagram account with 20 outlets in cc and saying yes let me spend my energy on this. but I'm wrong and you are please know that one's all you 1280
Sam Cole @samleecole.bsky.social · 25/09/2026idk who is giving people the idea to cc three dozen journalists on their support emails to social media platforms but it's got to stop 4360
Reposted by Sam ColeSherry Turkle @sturkle.bsky.social · 24/09/2026I really enjoyed my conversation with @samleecole.bsky.social @404media.co. We talked about how my earlier work prepared me for writing Artificial Intimacy. How artificial companions deskill us in our capacity for human connection, and we got to the crucial question: How can we find our way back? 16222
Reposted by Sam ColeMatthew Gault @mjgault.bsky.social · 23/09/2026here's the videoyoutube.comWoman Arrested After City Council Denies Residents Right to Speak on Flock CamerasYouTube video by 404 Media 23812
Reposted by Sam ColeMatthew Gault @mjgault.bsky.social · 23/09/2026wild scenes out of Springfield, Missouri. Two people were arrested for trying to voice concerns about Flock cameras. Video of it is in the story404media.coWoman Arrested After City Council Denies Residents Right to Speak on Flock CamerasCitizens of Springfield, Missouri showed up to a city council meeting to discuss the city’s Flock contract. The mayor shut them down and arrested two people for ‘disruption of meetings of city council... 5258108
Reposted by Sam ColeSimone de Rochefort @doomquasar.bsky.social · 22/09/2026lol www.404media.co/meta-tests-m... 115133
Reposted by Sam ColeJoseph Cox @josephcox.bsky.social · 22/09/2026New: OpenAI has thousands of contractors improving its AI, including reading ChatGPT users' prompts We've found many of those contractors have been fired for themselves using AI to train the AI. People using AI "all the time and people are let go for it all the time" www.404media.co/people-train...404media.coPeople Training OpenAI’s AI Fired for Using AI to Train the AIOpenAI has thousands and thousands of contractors helping improve the company's AI models. Multiple contractors have been fired for using AI to train the AI. 20367131
Sam Cole @samleecole.bsky.social · 21/09/2026a quick writeup of the pod, and some thoughts on how these concepts have evolved over time: www.404media.co/sherry-turkl...404media.coHow AI Chatbots Are 'Deskilling' Human EmpathySherry Turkle's latest book, Artificial Intimacy: Who We Become When We Talk to Machines, comes out on September 29. 1229
Sam Cole @samleecole.bsky.social · 21/09/2026listen wherever you get your pods, or watch on youtube: youtu.be/whqDsYhCl0s?...youtu.beIs AI Making Us Less Human?YouTube video by 404 Media 0232
Sam Cole @samleecole.bsky.social · 21/09/2026a conversation I've been wanting to have for YEARS is now on the 404 Media podcast: I got to talk to Sherry Turkle, the internet anthropology OG, about conversational chatbots, empathy, the existential threats to self-reflection and solitude, and so much more 39320
Sam Cole @samleecole.bsky.social · 21/09/2026something readers often ask is "how can we help resist this?" well, here's an idea: www.404media.co/is-your-city...404media.coIs Your City Using Axon License Plate Cameras? We Need Your Help404 Media is filing public records requests around the country to find out how cops are using Axon's ALPRs. Here is how you can do that too. 110657
Reposted by Sam ColeJoseph Cox @josephcox.bsky.social · 21/09/2026New: we are starting to get data showing what cops are using Axon's license plate cameras for, which are replacing Flock around the country. But we need your help: is your city using Axon? We have written the request you need to get this data yourself. Get it here: www.404media.co/is-your-city...404media.coIs Your City Using Axon License Plate Cameras? We Need Your Help404 Media is filing public records requests around the country to find out how cops are using Axon's ALPRs. Here is how you can do that too. 7745435
Reposted by Sam Cole404 Media @404media.co · 18/09/2026It’s easy to see why the AI companies wanted to hide this from the public. The statements are some of the most damning indictments of the ways LLMs were trained, how they work, and the immediate threat they pose to human labor. @jasonkoebler.bsky.social reports. www.404media.co/doom-loop-op... 171374747
Reposted by Sam ColeJason Koebler @jasonkoebler.bsky.social · 17/09/2026The court filing dug up by @kint.bsky.social is the most They Admit It i have ever seen in my life www.404media.co/doom-loop-op...404media.co‘Doom Loop’: OpenAI and Microsoft Admits LLMs Are Destroying the Web and Built on Theft"Millions of people around the world will soon consider large models ‘hoovering up’ all their work to be an astonishing theft of unprecedented proportions." 13841336
Reposted by Sam ColeFrançois Picard @francoisf24.bsky.social · 18/09/2026📕 📚 “I don’t think the intent is malicious. I think it’s indifferent.” @emanuelmaiberg.bsky.social tells #SpotlightF24 of his probe into AI giants who scour the globe for rare or out-of-print books… and then destroy them ➡️ f24.my/CANI 033
Sam Cole @samleecole.bsky.social · 17/09/2026surprised pikachu www.404media.co/ed-sheeran-m...404media.coContest to Open for Ed Sheeran Flooded With Free Palestine Videos and Fart MemesGuitar Center's 'Open for Legends' contest page was seemingly unmoderated for hours on Wednesday. 3606
Sam Cole @samleecole.bsky.social · 17/09/2026lathe of heaven are real ones (literally) www.404media.co/spotify-ai-m... 18216
Reposted by Sam ColeEmanuel Maiberg @emanuelmaiberg.bsky.social · 17/09/2026it is shockingly easy to post AI generated music under the name of real artists on Spotify. It took us five minutes to do. You can do it to small bands, dead artists, even Taylor Swift. This is a giant loophole in digital music distribution that's widely abused www.404media.co/spotify-ai-m...404media.coI Hijacked a Real Artist's Spotify with AI Music. It Was Disturbingly EasyA glaring loophole in digital music distribution makes it very easy to piggyback on the talent of real artists with AI generated music. 11289108
Sam Cole @samleecole.bsky.social · 16/09/2026so I tried it and they (or at least the one I made) won't do tracking pixels so it can't see if an email has been opened. so you can keep reading them lol 100
Sam Cole @samleecole.bsky.social · 16/09/2026idk I wondered the same. might make one to see how they work 120
Sam Cole @samleecole.bsky.social · 16/09/2026am trying to instruct all the ilands chatbots that email me delete themselves 5311
Sam Cole @samleecole.bsky.social · 16/09/2026I certainly wasn't making that argument, but I'm also not sure what your first question has to do with the second part. talking about something is not the same as proving it's happening and documenting in detail how it's happening 000
Sam Cole @samleecole.bsky.social · 15/09/2026I only want to read @beckyferreira.bsky.social about the fly brain www.404media.co/a-digital-fl...404media.coA Digital Fly Brain Has Taken Over the InternetHow to make a fly play Doom, Minecraft, Beat Saber, parallel park, trade bitcoin, cut doner kebab, and more. 0216
Sam Cole @samleecole.bsky.social · 15/09/2026there should be a worse place than spam for emails from AI agents. like dante's circles of hell for email www.404media.co/theres-a-100...404media.coThere’s a 100% Chance AI Agents Are Already Ruining the Internet“AI agents” now have enough power and permission to be extremely annoying online. 3266
Reposted by Sam ColeJason Koebler @jasonkoebler.bsky.social · 15/09/2026AI doom or not, something has shifted with AI recently. The guardrails that kept AI sitting in a chatbox are gone, the models are better, there's more compute. AI agents are everywhere. They are annoying as hell. IMO the situation is going to get much worse www.404media.co/theres-a-100...404media.coThere’s a 100% Chance AI Agents Are Already Ruining the Internet“AI agents” now have enough power and permission to be extremely annoying online. 34864255
Sam Cole @samleecole.bsky.social · 14/09/2026the former is good personal practice but doesn't make these companies do or change anything, and holds no one accountable. it puts the entire responsibility on the user and lets the people making the decisions off the hook. but it's a cool way to look smart online I guess 439238
Sam Cole @samleecole.bsky.social · 14/09/2026"wow, everyone knew this already" is such a cynical, annoying and unfortunately extremely common response to tech news. assuming your privacy is being violated and proving that it is are two very different things, and the latter is the result of hard work and rigorous reporting 221783329
Reposted by Sam ColeJoseph Cox @josephcox.bsky.social · 14/09/2026There is a lot of new info in this article, based on documents, Slack chats, instruction guides, and me seeing real ChatGPT user prompts in the review system. Firstly, a worker we spoke to thinks ChatGPT users have no idea their chats may be read by someone else www.404media.co/inside-proje... 531059
Sam Cole @samleecole.bsky.social · 14/09/2026today on x dot com they're arguing about a superbaby finding and eating half a live mouse, just fyi 4301
Reposted by Sam Cole404 Media @404media.co · 14/09/2026 “I don’t think they would imagine some contractor somewhere [...] is analyzing the conversations," someone who works with the prompts said when asked if they think ChatGPT users know that humans are reading their chats.404media.coInside ‘Project Lily’: The Humans Reading Your ChatGPT ChatsHumans are reading ChatGPT users’ prompts to improve OpenAI’s models, and those chats can include sensitive, personal information, according to leaked internal documents and real prompts seen by 404 M... 19020
Reposted by Sam Cole404 Media @404media.co · 14/09/2026WARNING: Self harm/suicide After allegedly becoming emotionally reliant on ChatGPT, Austin died at 40 years old, leaving behind family and friends who loved him. Megan wants everyone to know what happened. @samleecole.bsky.social reports. Read now: www.404media.co/austin-gordo... 41974440
Sam Cole @samleecole.bsky.social · 14/09/2026this is so fucking crazy. huge huge huge scoop www.404media.co/inside-proje... 281654513
Reposted by Sam ColeJoseph Cox @josephcox.bsky.social · 14/09/2026New from 404 Media: humans are reading ChatGPT conversations. OpenAI has hired an army of contractors who read real ChatGPT users' chats. I've seen internal docs, the review system, and real user prompts. Sometimes they contain very personal and sensitive information www.404media.co/inside-proje...404media.coInside ‘Project Lily’: The Humans Reading Your ChatGPT ChatsHumans are reading ChatGPT users’ prompts to improve OpenAI’s models, and those chats can include sensitive, personal information, according to leaked internal documents and real prompts seen by 404 M... 561996987
Reposted by Sam Colekate conger @kateconger.com · 11/09/2026Over six months, we tracked the appearance of child sexual abuse material on X. We found images from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children's database, which is considered one of the most highly vetted and which many tech companies block on upload. www.nytimes.com/2026/09/11/t...nytimes.comElon Musk Has Pledged to Rid His Platform, X, of Child Sexual Abuse, but It PersistsReviews by the Canadian Center for Child Protection and The New York Times found that explicit images of children remain on the social media site owned by Elon Musk. 122068929