Tim Ferriss Show: Marc Goodman, FBI Futurist, on High-Tech Crime and How to Protect Yourself

In this episode, we’ll go deep into the digital underground to expose the alarming ways criminals, corporations, and even countries are using emerging technologies against you…and some simple steps you can take to decrease your vulnerability…

“The fact of the matter is, back in 2008, terrorists were using search engines, like Google, to determine who shall live and who shall die. I know it’s a black swan event, but when you’re sharing on Facebook, it’s not just the media and marketing companies that you need to be concerned about. When you share openly, everybody has access to it.” (Tweet It)
– Marc Goodman

Marc Goodman has been a Resident Futurist for the FBI and a senior adviser to Interpol.  He is also author of the much anticipated Future Crimes.

In this episode, we’ll go deep into the digital underground to expose the alarming ways criminals, corporations, and even countries are using emerging technologies against you…and some simple steps you can take to decrease your vulnerability.

To start, 3-D printers can produce AK-47s, bio-terrorists can download the recipe for Spanish flu, and cartels are using fleets of drones to ferry drugs across borders (all of which we touch on), but what else is waiting for you? What else is potentially targeting you right now?

If you want to hear about current and future threats, and simple defensive steps you can take, this interview is for you.

• Listen to it on iTunes.
• Stream by clicking here.
• Download the MP3 by right-clicking here and choosing “save link as.”

Selected Links from the Episode

• Future Crimes by Marc Goodman
• Hartnackschule – Berlin-based German language school
• “Hacker” Movies: War Games | Sneakers | The Net | Ghost Busters
• Marc’s fave vintage crime novel – ONE POLICE PLAZA by William Caunitz
• Watch Marc Goodman’s TED Talk
• Gattaca – Movie related to the universal genetic testing
• Hacking the President’s DNA by Andrew Hessel, Marc Goodman and Steven Kotler
• Warfarin – anticoagulant
• Neighborhood Emergency Response Training course
• Reputation.com – Manage your online reputation
• The Onion Router (TOR) – Anonymity for web browsing
• Watch Ethan Nadelmann’s TED Talk
• Watch IBM’s Watson beat the humans (Not the best video, but it tells the story)
• Password protection and generation services: 1Password | LastPass
• Pre-order a copy of the book at FutureCrimes.com
• Learn more about Singularity University

Show Notes

• Rapid fire questions [7:45]
• Marc Goodman’s daily rituals [11:55]
• Surprising examples of Internet-based crime [13:25]
• Personalized biological weapons, genetic sequencing, etc. [16:25]
• 23andMe best practices: paranoia vs. preparedness [22:10]
• Examining the urban myth (or not?) of personalized biological weapons [26:10]
• Debunking the myth that terrorists and criminals are simply uneducated [28:10]
• “Public safety is too important to leave to the professionals.” [35:55]
• Do you think having iodine tablets and gas masks at home is overkill? [44:05]
• Kidnapping in the modern world [45:40]
• The story of Andy Grove and data infiltration in China [50:10]
• Spear-phishing e-mails and how billions can be lost [52:50]
• How to Armageddon-proof yourself [54:55]
• The digital underground and how to access it [57:00]
• The illicit drug industry and how disruptive technology is a threat to it [1:00:00]
• On “Narco” R&D budgets, drones, submarines and shock and awe  [1:06:55]
• Potential threats of artificial intelligence (AI) [1:12:25]
• The scalable paradigm shift in modern crime [1:15:15]
• A handful of simple steps to decrease the odds of successful attacks [1:18:55]
• Low-hanging fruit in terms of security [1:25:25]
• On cyber crime cottage industries [1:27:40]
• Why there is a Post-It note on every camera of Marc Goodman’s devices [1:29:05]
• How the Crowne Casino in Melbourne was hacked for $33 million [1:33:05]

People and Concepts Mentioned (Partial List)

• Aum Shinrikyo
• Andy Grove
• Open-Source Intelligence
• Red Team – testing your assumptions and vulnerabilities