19 hours ago
Episode 262 - Facebook Theft, Fake Heads, Federal Time, Failure to Launch
Welcome to this week's episode of the PEBCAK Podcast! We’ve got four amazing stories this week so sit back, relax, and keep being awesome! Be sure to stick around for our Dad Joke of the Week. (DJOW)
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Starting July 7, every new car sold in the EU must include an infrared camera aimed at the driver's face to detect distraction, with critics warning it's a privacy nightmare in waiting.
- https://cybernews.com/security/eu-car-camera-monitoring/
- https://electrek.co/2026/06/15/chinese-drivers-plastic-heads-fool-tesla-autopilot-camera/
New EU General Safety Regulation mandates in-cabin, driver-facing infrared cameras (Advanced Driver Distraction Warning systems) in all new cars as of July 7, 2026 — with the US following suit by 2027 — and while regulators insist the footage stays local and non-biometric, there's no enforcement detail on what happens if that's violated, fueling fears the data could be harvested or resold given prior scandals over automakers monetizing driver data.
Story 2 — $30 Plastic Doll Heads Are Fooling Tesla's Autopilot Camera
A cottage industry in China is selling cheap figurine heads that trick Tesla's cabin camera into thinking a distracted driver is paying attention, letting people run FSD/Autopilot hands-off and eyes-off for extended stretches.
Fired Microsoft Engineer Sentenced to 9 Years for $10M Digital Currency Heist
A former Microsoft software engineer, fired in 2018, was sentenced to nine years in federal prison for stealing over $10 million in digital gift-card value from the company and laundering it through Bitcoin.
A Ukrainian national who worked as a Microsoft contractor-then-employee testing the company's online retail platform from 2016–2018, used his and colleagues' test accounts to steal "currency stored value" (digital gift cards), laundered the proceeds through a Bitcoin mixer to fund a $1.6M waterfront home and $160K car, and was ultimately convicted on 18 federal felony counts and ordered to pay $8.34M in restitution on top of the 9-year sentence.
Meta Lets Anyone Turn Your Public Instagram Photos into AI Images (Now Walked Back)
Meta quietly launched "Muse Image," letting anyone @-mention a public Instagram account to generate AI images of that person's likeness with no notification or consent — triggering backlash from SAG-AFTRA and CAA before Meta pulled the feature.
Meta's new Muse Image generator defaulted every public adult Instagram account into an opt-out (not opt-in) system where anyone could tag a profile to generate AI images from their photos with zero notification, prompting SAG-AFTRA and talent agency CAA to publicly demand opt-outs before Meta reversed course on July 10 and pulled the @-mention capability entirely after backlash.
1 in 3 Young Adults Are Living With Their Parents
A new FinanceBuzz analysis of Census data finds 33% of 18–34-year-olds now live with their parents, nearing pandemic-era highs, with New Jersey, Connecticut, and California leading the pack.
Census-based research shows nearly a third of Americans aged 18–34 (33%) are living at home — a rate that's climbed steadily since the 1960s (22.5%) and is now approaching the 2020 pandemic peak (33.6%) — with expensive states like New Jersey (44.1%), Connecticut (41.3%), and California (39.1%) topping the list, and men 25–34 living at home nearly 1.5x as often as women in the same age range.
Dad Joke of the Week (DJOW)
Find the hosts on LinkedIn:
Chris - https://www.linkedin.com/in/chlouie/
Brian - https://www.linkedin.com/in/briandeitch-sase/
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