11/02/2025

Cybercrime and How Hackers Prey on Human Nature

WHYY

We hear about the virus that ushered in the age of social engineering attacks, the history of cybercrime, and what led one man to become a hacker.

Cybercrime has been around for as long as computers have — but over the past 20 years, it’s exploded into a global threat, with staggering financial, political, and personal consequences. These days, large-scale cyber attacks can have domino effects that go far beyond computers and tech, affecting everything from supply chains to critical infrastructure and the economy. In the meantime, defending ourselves has grown ever more complicated and expensive.

On this encore episode, we look at cybercrime — how it’s evolved, how it affects us, in big ways and small, and how scammers prey on human nature. We’ll hear about the ILOVEYOU virus — the first significant malware event to capitalize on social engineering; one man’s path from petty thief to cyber scam menace; and how hacking went from a nerdy pursuit to a multi-billion dollar industry.