One man lost roughly $100K to a con artist—then turned it into a business

The story of a bitcoin loophole that gave one man millions

James Parker discovered a glitch in an Australian cryptocurrency exchange that would allow him to cash in credits worth over $20M and make big gifts to his friends. Like most loopholes, the authorities found out, but not before his life was transformed. The first in a six-part series.

Spellcaster: the rise and fall of Sam Bankman-Fried

The rapid collapse of FTX, one of the world's largest cryptocurrency exchanges, in late 2022 shocked the world. At the center of the fiasco was Sam Bankman-Fried, a 29-year-old wunderkind who had entranced politicians, journalists, financiers, and others with his melding of altruism and digital currency. The sordid details revealed as the empire fell captured public attention—venture into the death spiral with this in-depth podcast from Bloomberg.

Georgia inmate pulls off $11M heist—from inside his cell

Prisoner Arthur Lee Cofield Jr., 31, allegedly impersonated Sidney Kimmel, the uber-wealthy chairman and CEO of a Los Angeles entertainment company, with the help of contraband cell phones from inside his prison cell.

Stephen Findeisen is the YouTuber taking on crypto scams

While many cryptocurrencies are focused on advanced technical projects or real-life uses, the proliferation of easy-to-create memecoins has led to a boom in scams. Stephen Findeisen, aka Coffeezilla, is regarded as one of the best independent investigative journalists exposing high-profile frauds, pump-and-dump schemes, rug-pulls, and more.

A man who counterfeited over $1M explains how to counterfeit money

In 2019, after Jeff Turner forged US banknotes such as the 1996-series $100 bill and the 2013 “blue note,” he was indicted on federal conspiracy and served 10 months in prison. In this video, Turner explains how to spot a fake banknote, and provides information about the materials and processes required to make fake money.

Turning a profit with terminal illness

After Amanda Riley was diagnosed with cancer, her social media followers rallied to raise funds to ensure their favorite religious influencer could afford one miracle after another. As more than $100,000 of donations poured in, Riley shared glimpses into her health struggles, posting evidence as fake as her diagnosis. Pulling from years of journalistic investigation, this eight-episode podcast series dives into Riley's reality.

How to make a billion dollars, with Brad Jacobs

Brad Jacobs is a serial entrepreneur who has launched eight billion-dollar enterprises during his storied financial career. With companies focused in energy, waste, and more, Jacobs has stuck to a roll-up playbook of consolidating small players into one conglomerate within an industry, a common tactic of similar private equity firms. This podcast from Founders summarizes Jacobs' book detailing his approach.

True crime survivors often deal with the fallout from their association long after the case is closed

Collier Landry was a preteen when he notified police and later testified that he had overheard his father killing his mother. His role in the case cost him his dog and adoptive sister, and, as recently as 2023, led his extended family to reject him.

A comic book-style review of attending a biohacking conference

When Andrew Greenstone attended a biohacking conference in Austin, Texas, he didn't expect to walk away a newly implanted member of the techy cadre. Partway through the event, he paid $150 to have an NFC chip inserted into his right hand.

NBA referee Tim Donaghy was paid roughly $300K to fix games

Donaghy said he struggled with a gambling addiction, causing him to risk so much. In this interview, he explains the story of his scandal, and how the mob led to his eventual arrest.

Meet a payday lender who tried to fight the industry

Phil Locke once ran more than 40 payday lending stores in Michigan before walking away from lending in 2012. Locke left because he said he felt guilty about being a predatory lender. He tried to become a consumer protection advocate and influence reform, but ended up returning to the industry. (Some users may experience an email wall.)

The strange, unsolved story of Filippo Bernardini and the stolen book manuscripts

Over the last five years, a mysterious figure has been stealing manuscripts, often unpublished, from individuals and organizations in the publishing industry across three continents. The scammer, later identified as Filippo Bernardini, was an...

A ‘Bored Ape’ NFT was once kidnapped

An art heist in the crypto world plunges listeners of the "Search Engine" podcast into another mystery about why so many celebrities suddenly started selling the public on NFTs in 2021.

James Frey's 'A Million Little Pieces' was marketed as memoir but revealed as fiction

The addiction book became a huge success after being added to Oprah Winfrey's book club. After it was revealed to be fiction in 2005, Oprah invited Frey on her show and criticized him for deceiving her and his readers.

How a brain injury created a mathematical mind

In 2002, two men savagely attacked Jason Padgett outside a karaoke bar, leaving him with a severe concussion--and turning Padgett into a mathematical genius.

A Guardian writer turned midlife chess slump into an obsession

Journalist Stephen Moss embarked on a chess self-improvement journey described in "The Guardian." Not a how-to, but a reflection on loss, drive, and whether mastering chess can mean mastering oneself.

An account of unethical behavior by psychedelic guides

Ethical guidelines and protections have a gossamer grasp in the underground psychedelics movement. This 34-minute podcast episode delves into patterns of deception and abuse by movement leaders through one source's deeply personal tale. This episode, which involves descriptions of sexual violence, is one of many in New York Magazine's Power Trip series, a nine-part investigation into the darker side of the psychedelic renaissance.

Y Combinator tends to outperform many other Silicon Valley startup accelerators

In a podcast episode, Garry Tan—CEO of startup accelerator Y Combinator—speaks about how YC has a better track record than the rest of Silicon Valley at placing bets on startups. Learn how Tan earned his first million dollars, as well as lessons from other successful businesspeople, including Y Combinator’s Paul Graham.

Listen to an interview with a gig economy expert

In this podcast episode, the hosts sit down with NerdWallet Senior News Editor Rick VanderKnyff, a gig economy expert who explains why the sector grew during the COVID-19 pandemic, what defines a gig worker, how gig workers handle their finances, and more.

One '$64,000 Question' winner went from police officer to Shakespearean scholar overnight

Redmond O’Hanlon was a police officer living on Staten Island, New York, when he competed on “The $64,000 Question.” His knowledge of Shakespeare earned him $16,000, which was four times his annual salary. After appearing on the show, he became a minor celebrity, and created a Shakespeare-themed set of playing cards and established the O'Hanlon Shakespeare Service, a consultancy on the Bard, all while continuing to work for the NYPD.

People are making careers out of playing claw machines

As it turns out, winning at a claw machine arcade game over and over again makes for great social media content. Influencers like Erik Kane are taking advantage of this—and making money off of it, too.

Hear how gladiator fights were funded, judged, and sometimes fixed

In a wide-ranging interview, Professor Michael Carter unpacks the business of gladiatorial games—from advertising and fighter merch to referees, match rules, and a code of conduct that often pushed gladiators to spare defeated opponents.

Crunching the numbers on the cost of ransomware

This blog is a preview of the 2022 Crypto Crime Report, offering a summary of ransomware activity in 2021, the most active strains of ransomware, and more (w/ data, charts, and illustrations).

A story of upward mobility

What role did the neighborhood you grew up in have in shaping your economic opportunities? Author Aaron Williams tells a data story about migration, community, and returning to your roots.

Consumers reported losing more than $126M to Social Security scams in 2023

This article includes tips on how to spot a Social Security scam, including information about what the real Social Security Administration will and will not do. For instance, the Social Security Administration will never threaten someone with benefits suspension or bank account seizure if they do not comply with a request.

Art theft is the third-largest source of criminal revenues worldwide, thanks in part to the subjective nature of valuing a work of art.

A vending machine run with Anthropic's AI went out of business after it was convinced to give away items for free and sell a video game console.

A Yale student wrote a profound essay about the consulting industry's influence on elite college students that was published in a book of her writing after she died in a post-graduation car accident.

In 2019, a laptop loaded with six of the worst malware in history and described as 'an exhibit of historical weaponry' sold for $1.3M.

In 2009, the nation was gripped by the story of a missing young boy who was believed to be floating over Colorado in a homemade balloon, until it was revealed that he was at home the whole time.

How the most famous Ebola book, The Hot Zone, which sold 3.5 million copies and was translated into 30 languages, got aspects of the disease so wrong.

Watch this video that uses Lego bricks to explain how venture capital works.

Exploring the Larry Bird punch that almost changed March Madness

In 2018, 26-year-old missionary John Allen Chau was killed by tribesmen after attempting to reach and evangelize on India's isolated North Sentinel Island

How Amazon operates a 'flywheel' business model, a self-reinforcing cycle that drives continuous growth

US consumers collectively owe more than $1T to credit card companies—almost as much as they owe in auto loans.

Play the role of a student in a game where you try to navigate college and remain debt-free, selecting different income levels, high school experience, race, ethnicity, and more.

Warren Buffett's former professor Benjamin Graham is known as the 'father of value investing,' a strategy in which investors seek to buy stocks trading below their intrinsic worth.

The idea for the Federal Reserve was conceived in secret in 1910—with bankers donning duck hunt gear for disguise while traveling to a remote country club on Georgia's Jekyll Island

Clever Hans was a 1900s horse that was believed to be able to solve math equations, tell time, and read and comprehend German, until a psychology student discovered how he got his answers.

In 1939, baseball star Lou Gehrig delivered his inspirational 'Luckiest Man' speech after retiring due to the health condition that now bears his name.

Discover the catastrophic consequences of a failure of the US electrical grid—something that is more likely than many Americans think.

The Dracula character, now seen as the vampire archetype, was inspired by a seafood-induced nightmare its creator experienced.

Search a massive database of over 4 decades of clues from the TV quiz show 'Jeopardy!'

Up to a million Girl Scouts sell about 200 million cookie boxes every spring, generating $800 million, largely because refusing a child is frowned upon

After her fellow cult members tried to kill her with an LSD-infused hamburger, one member of the Manson Family, the murderous cult led by Charles Manson, decided to testify against the group's leader.

Explore a list of the 100 best novels of all time, compiled by some of the world's best living writers, including Salman Rushdie, Stephen King, and Jennifer Egan.

Recent research found that the brain doesn't seem to massively rewire following amputation—upending earlier beliefs about the cause of phantom limb pain.

The use of fungi to detoxify land and water—a process known as mycoremediation—has been used to clean up natural resources affected by the 2025 California wildfires.

Telehealth demand for GLP-1s for weight loss is booming as consumers seek easier access.