Stolen Podcast with Erin West
The Stolen Podcast is a weekly look into the hidden world of transnational digital crime. Join host Erin West — former prosecutor, now cybercrime investigator, global keynote speaker, and your guide into the dark corners of the internet.
Hear from law enforcement, cybersecurity experts, and victims who’ve lived it. Erin investigates the global rise of digital crime — scams, cyber fraud, and other forms of online exploitation — and the people caught in the crossfire. These are the voices behind the headlines and the crimes that cross borders and boundaries.
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Explore previous episodes of the Stolen podcast.
“I Thought LinkedIn Was Safe” — How a Utah Woman Lost $850,000
Episode 60: Scam survivor Anola Johnson shares her story of a romance scam and what she learned about manipulation, social media, and how to turn her experience into advocacy.
How Smart People Get Scammed: Psychology and Manipulation
Episode 56: Dr. Martina Dove uses a real-life romance scam story to explain the psychological strategies scammers use to manipulate their targets.
Romance Fraud: One Woman’s Journey from Target to Survivor
Episode 55: A scammer used calculated, precise psychological manipulation in a six-month romance fraud that dismantled Kirsty’s finances, her sense of self, and nearly her life.
How Romance Fraud Hijacks Your Brain Chemistry
Episode 52: Anna Rowe, fraud survivor and co-founder of LoveSaid.org, explains why romance fraud works and why it’s important change the language people use to talk about it.
$196 Billion Stolen in Scams — And We’re Still Blaming Victims
Episode 50: AARP’s Kathy Stokes and Erin West talk about some of the overlooked dimensions of the scam epidemic — including how we talk about victims and the positive work being done to address the crimes.
Your Bank Might Know You’re Being Scammed Before You Do
Episode 49: Erin and BioCatch’s Sharell Barshishat dig into the fascinating (and alarming) intersection of fraud, banking, and technology strategies to commit — and fight — fraud.
Deepfakes, AI, and Scams: Seeing Is No Longer Believing
Episode 44: What if the person on your screen isn't real? Perry Carpenter shares how deepfakes, AI-generated voice cloning, and synthetic media have become powerful weapons.
Fighting Back against a Romance Scam
Episode 16: Erin West talks with Mary, a romance scam survivor who refused to be silenced. Instead, she documented every message, tracked her scammers, and used AI to fight back.
Understanding the Psychology of Scams
Episode 7: Dr. Martina Dove outlines the psychological manipulation techniques scammers use, the impact on victims, and the societal consequences of eroded trust.